The Lost Weekend
by Grl4fnfctn
Summary: Feeling the need to escape from A, Aria decides a weekend alone is just what she needs. However, her scheme doesn't go quite as planned as she unexpectedly finds herself isolated with only her hot, young English teacher, Mr. Fitz to keep her company.
1. Chapter 1

The Lost Weekend

**This is an idea that's been in the back of my mind for a while. Let me know if you think it's something that I should continue.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with Pretty Little Liars**

Aria felt that she was at the end of her rope. For the last few months "A" had been relentless in the number of creepy, sinister texts that he, she, or shem had been sending Aria and her friends. It had gotten to the point that she jumped every time her phone chirped with an incoming message. Even her brother Mike had noticed.

"Gee Aria, over caffeinated?" he complained as her hand jerked late the night before, spilling her coffee over the mug's rim and onto his homework paper. Her lips lifted slightly at the corners into a guilty smile as she reluctantly glanced down at the phone's screen, relieved to see it was just a message from Hannah.

Feeling like she couldn't take it any longer, Aria decided that she needed to take some drastic measures to distance herself from A. She was planning on leaving Rosewood. Not for good, mind you, but to take a break from the constant harassment by A. Hannah had told her last night that, with the upcoming long holiday weekend, she was going to go out of town to visit her dad. At that time, a germ of an idea began to take hold in Aria's mind. She had thought about it last night and again today and was now on her way to making her plans a reality.

It started with doing some research online. She didn't really care where she went, but because of limited finances, it couldn't be too far away. The only criteria she had is that it needed to be remote enough that there would be no cell service. She had remembered a cabin that her family had rented several years ago and how Mike had complained that he couldn't play his computer games because satellite service was practically nonexistent.

She was able to find a rental agency online that handled the cabin and booked it for the long weekend. The next obstacle was getting permission from her dad. Aria had been able to handle that one pretty easily with a quick lie that she had been invited to go with Hannah to her dad's. And to her friends, she told them that she was going to spend the weekend with her dad at the college he was guest teaching at for that semester. She wasn't exactly sure why she was lying to Spencer, Hannah and Emily, but she just felt that she needed this time alone. She didn't want one of them suggesting that they make a girls' retreat out of it.

The final hurdle was transportation. She couldn't take her car if her dad thought she was going with Hannah, so that left the bus as the only option. Checking the routes, she saw that a bus was leaving Rosewood the following day and would take her to Smithton, a small town located fairly close to the cabin. She assumed that once she was there she could rent a car to drive the additional 75 miles that would be necessary.

Sitting back in her chair, Aria took a long deep breath, smiling in satisfaction over the thought that in just a few more hours she would be A-free for three entire days. Her mind drifted over what she needed to pack. She'd definitely need some books, her camera and maybe a sketch pad to keep her busy since she'd be in such a remote spot. That wouldn't exactly leave a lot of room in her duffle bag for clothes_, but since I'll be in the middle of nowhere by myself, what does it matter_?

Her soft hazel eyes jerked toward her phone as it chirped an incoming message. Lifting it up, she saw immediately that it was from an unknown source. That could only mean one thing... another unwanted message from A. Before glancing at the text, her eyes flickered once more toward the clock, willing the hands to move faster so that tomorrow would finally get here.

Ezra placed the last folded shirt in his duffle bag. Everything was ready except for his laptop. He wanted to jot down a few more ideas for his manuscript and then he'd add it to the rest of his stuff.

Thinking back, he was amazed how everything had worked out. He'd been feeling frustrated lately over how slowly the ideas for his new book were going. Between his responsibilities at Rosewood High during the day and the amount of homework he brought home each night, he never seemed to have any time to devote to writing. And when he did find a few minutes to sit down and write, his mind seemed too filled with other things and no concrete ideas would form. He loved his work but his job was exhausting him. That's why he looked at it as a blessing when his friend Wren had called and asked him if he'd look after his cabin while he was out of the country.

_What a perfect opportunity,_ Ezra reasoned, _to spend the entire weekend alone, no distractions, where I can devote all my time and energy to my writing_. Wren had said he was free to use it if he wanted, but warned that it was somewhat rustic. Ezra didn't mind that at all. _Probably, the more rustic the better_, Ezra thought_. As long as it has four walls, a roof, and running water, that's all I really need._

Aria looked out the bus window, noticing the darkening clouds overhead. _Looks like rain_, she thought to herself. Shivering slightly from the blast of the chilled air from the air conditioner, she thought once again how she wished she had brought a jacket on the bus. Reaching up, she tried for the umpteenth time to smash the air vents closed, but like every time before, they remained stubbornly open, raining the cold air down on her chilled arms.

It had been warm outside this morning, and the thought hadn't even entered her mind to have a coat, even though it should have. In early spring the weather was always unpredictable. It could be warm and sunny during the day, and then turn quite chilly in the evenings. She had been so anxious to get out of town that the weather had been the last thing she was thinking about.

A scattering of buildings slowly came into her view. _We must be getting close to Smithton._ As the bus traveled down the road, it didn't take long for Aria to realize that to call it a town, seemed a disservice to towns. Several of the stores passed appeared abandoned; closed, dusty store fronts to a time long past. The bus rumbled down the street and eventually pulled over and stopped at the local station. Aria's apprehension was growing by the minute at the thought of getting off the bus and leaving behind this last piece of trusted habitation.

_Oh well, I said I wanted remote,_ she thought in resignation as she grabbed her duffle bag from the overhead compartment and made her way down the aisle. A young slender guy with a scruffy goatee stood up in front of her, abruptly blocking her path. Scowling back at her in annoyance as if her very presence was an affront to him, he grabbed his gear down from the bin, hitting her in the arm as the gravity caught hold of it.

Aria staggered a bit to the side, knocking into the seatback beside her. Her eyes opened wide in surprise, as she waited for him to apologize.

"Watch it," the guy snarled at her before turning and heading toward the front of the bus.

"What an ass," Aria muttered under her breath as she massaged her shoulder and continued up the aisle toward the exit.

As the door slowly closed and the bus rumbled down the street, coughing huge puffs of gray exhaust in its wake, Aria glanced around her. She was growing more and more uneasy at the idea that she was going to find a car rental agency in this town. _Maybe I should have thought to look that up before leaving home too, _she thought wistfully.

Looking across the street, she saw the flashing neon sign for Rosie's Diner. Hitching her back pack higher on her shoulder, she crossed the street and entered the restaurant. Several of the booths were occupied and so she made her way over to the counter in hopes of grabbing a cup of coffee and a little information.

"What can I get you, Sugar?" purred the waitress. Aria looked up at the tired, red head, who was absently smacking her gum behind her bright pink lips, waiting for Aria to order.

"Um, I'll have a caramel late please," she said as she quickly glanced over the plastic menu.

"We've got decaf or leaded, that's it," the waitress replied blandly.

"Oh. Leaded then. And lots of cream please," Aria added as the waitress set a cup in front of her before reaching for the pot percolating behind the counter.

"Can you tell me where I can rent a car?" Aria asked her hopefully.

"I'd say the closest place is Clearmont," the waitress responded, sighing deeply as if bored by the conversation.

"Clearmonts? Is that on this street? Or can you give me directions?" Aria asked hopefully.

"Clearmont, not Clearmonts," the waitress repeated slowly. "It's a town about 30 miles from here. We don't get many people through here looking for car rentals. I'd suggest taking the bus."

"Yeeeaaah," Aria said slowly. "Been there, done that. Is there another bus through here today?"

"Sorry, Sugar, I don't run the bus station. You'd need to ask them across the street there," she said, nodding her head in indication to the bus terminal Aria had just left.

"Thanks." Aria smiled politely as she decided her next move. Looking out the window toward the station she noticed the trees lining the street swaying in the heavy breeze as bits of trash danced down the nearly empty street. Rain was definitely in the near future.

Tearing her gaze away from the street, her eyes locked onto the steely gaze of the young hostile man from the bus. He was sitting several stools away from her, but his eyes were riveted onto Aria. She was use to guys at school checking her out on occasion but this didn't feel the same. This guy seemed angry and his eyes were shooting daggers at her.

_Sheesh, what's the matter with this guy?_ Shivering slightly, she looked away. He gave her the creeps.

Taking a sip of her coffee, Aria winced at the acrid bitter taste of the stale brew. It tasted as if it had been sitting in the pot for hours. Setting the cup back down, she placed a couple of dollars on the counter and picked up her back pack and headed toward the restroom located on the far side of the diner.

Placing her bag on the sink, she took out her brush, running it several times through her long chestnut locks before securing the mass back into a thick pony tail. She sprayed her breath with the minty mouthwash to rid herself of the aftertaste of the diner's coffee. Aria entered the stall and closed and secured the door behind her. A minute later, she heard the outer door open as the sound of soft footsteps tread across the tiled floor. She wouldn't have thought anything about it except that no sound followed. Immediately, without conscious effort, her thoughts turned to A. Was she followed here?

Her heart raced as she could feel the beginnings of a panic attack coming on. She had been prone to these ever since A had become part of her life. Willing herself to calm down, she rationalized with herself that there was no way A could be here. _No one knows where I'm headed_. After closing her eyes and taking several deep and calming meditation breaths, she slowly opened the stall door and looked out. The room was empty. The relief that Aria felt was quickly replaced with panic as she realized that not only was the room empty of people, but it was also empty of her back pack.

_No way! There is no way someone stole my bag!_

Bursting out of the stall, Aria glanced around, frantically checking the floor to see if it had dropped down. She even looked in the other stalls, which of course made no sense. Finally, she left the room and rushed back over to the counter where the waitress was leaning casually against it talking to another customer.

"Did you see someone just come out of the bathroom?" Aria blurted out.

The waitress turned to her, lips pursed in displeasure at what she perceived to be a rude interruption. Seeing Aria's wide-eyed, panicked look, her expression softened.

"What Sugar?"

"Did you see someone just leave the bathroom? My back pack is missing. Someone stole it!" she cried.

Horrified, the waitress glanced over at the customer, both of them shaking their heads. "Sorry, dear, I didn't see a thing. Did you Hank?" she asked the man seated at the counter.

"No Jean, I saw nothing. I only have eyes for you," he replied, smiling sweetly at the waitress.

Laughing and patting his arm playfully, Jean turned back to Aria. "I'm sorry. I hope you didn't have anything valuable in there."

"My wallet was in there. Along with my clothes and books, and everything I brought for this weekend. Now I don't even have money to buy another bus ticket. What am I going to do?" Aria cried, her voice rising in panic, as several other patrons glanced curiously in her direction. Her hand fluttered to her neck, clutching the watch chain dangling down her chest.

"Aria?" a surprised voice called out.

Pivoting swiftly around, Aria's eyes widened as her mouth dropped open in surprise. "Mr. Fitz? What are doing here?" She couldn't believe that she was standing face to face with her English teacher. Her very young, hot English teacher, she added in her mind.

"I'm heading out of town for the weekend. I stopped off for a few things before hitting the road again."

Aria glanced down at the brown bag gripped in his hand. She could tell by the screw cap that was protruding from the top that his "supplies" seemed to consist of some type of liquor.

"What are you doing here? Are you okay," he asked, clearly concerned.

"I was heading out of town too. My back pack was just stolen. Everything's gone," she stated, her voice cracking at the end. She could feel her eyes welling up with tears. The last thing she wanted to do was act like a child in front of Mr. Fitz, crying like a baby.

"Are you alone?" he asked surprised, looking around for her family.

"Um, yeah," Aria answered slowly. She wasn't sure what else to say. She certainly couldn't explain her desperate need to escape from A's continual torment.

"You're not running away, are you?" he teased, smiling down at her.

Gazing up at his brilliant blue eyes, Aria temporarily seemed to lose the ability to speak. She seemed to be losing herself within his stare, feeling herself drowning deeper within the twin blue pools.

Realizing that he had asked her a question, she lowered her eyes, breaking the spell, and she quickly licked her lips to counter her nerves. "No, I'm not. I just needed to get away from everything for the weekend. I rented a cabin about an hour from here, but now I have no way to get there."

Ezra was relieved when Aria had looked away. He had suddenly become too aware of how closely they were standing, and how her hazel eyes were glistening with her unshed tears. He had felt a strong sudden impulse to reach up and touch her cheek, offering some sort of comfort. That desire had shocked him to his core. There was no denying the fact that she was attractive, but she was his student! He must be more tired than he thought to have entertained such an idea even for a second.

He couldn't help but be curious as to what troubles were causing her to feel the need to get away from Rosewood. Could she be having boyfriend issues? Family problems? A flash of something twisted in his gut at the thought of her dating. Jealousy? He nervously pushed the sudden thought aside.

"Well, I can't just leave you here stranded. How far away did you say this cabin was?"

"About an hour north of town, I think."

"I can take you there," he offered. "It sounds like we're staying generally in the same area."

"Wow, thanks, Mr. Fitz," Aria replied in relief. She might not have any of her supplies, but at least she now had a way of getting to her destination, and hopefully she could talk him into bringing her back too at the end of the weekend. "I'd say don't go out of your way for me, but I'm kind of in a bind. It's a blessing that I ran into you. I don't know what I would have done."

"Don't worry about it, Aria. What's an additional fifteen minutes on the road? You ready?"

Glancing around one last time to see if miraculously her bag had reappeared, Aria nodded. "I guess so."

Opening the door, he allowed her to exit first, placing his hand on the small of her back as he guided her through the doorway. It was a small, polite gesture that she was sure he did for all his female friends but she couldn't help but be aware of the warmth of his hand through her thin white T-shirt. She felt as if her skin was being seared by his touch.

Stepping out the door, Aria was immediately assaulted by a brisk gush of wind. The small tendrils that had escaped her pony tail danced around the sides of her face as the silver bangles in her ears swayed back and forth, knocking against her neck. Shivering slightly at the cooling temperature, she hugged her arms tightly around her, wishing once again for that forgotten jacket sitting at home.

"It's turning colder, isn't it," Ezra said as he walked briskly to his car. "There's definitely a storm coming." As if in response to his words, a flash of lightening filled the air followed several seconds later by a loud clap of thunder. The air was thick with the steely scent of impending rain.

Jumping slightly in reaction to the loud noise, Aria quickly grabbed the handle, tearing the door open and diving inside as the first fat drops of rain pattered onto the windshield. Before Ezra could even turn on the engine, the rain was coming down in a steady sheet. Running the wipers for a few minutes to clear his view, Ezra slowly pulled out onto the empty street, heading out of town.

After about an hour, Aria started to grow restless. It was taking longer to get there than she thought due to the heavy rain. For the last half hour it had been pounding the car as the wipers attempted desperately to keep up with the heavy onslaught. It seemed to be a losing battle. As a result, they were traveling much slower than they would have ordinarily been driving.

Aria glanced sideways, watching Ezra's long tapered fingers resting on the gear shift between them. She couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to slip her own fingers between his. Every girl in the school had a crush on Mr. Fitz, and she was no exception. There had been many afternoons when she and Hannah had fantasized about what the perfect date with him would be like.

They knew he wasn't married, but no one knew if he had a girlfriend. He was very private about his personal life, never sharing a lot of information with his students. She wondered what his type would be. Hannah would go crazy when Aria told her about this time alone in the car with him. _If I can tell her. _ That would mean explaining the whole stolen weekend, and she wasn't sure she was ever going to do that.

Ezra had been acutely aware of Aria the entire drive. He could smell the scent of her soft perfume which seemed to fill the car. It tickled his nose as a sudden random image flashed through his head of him leaning over, nuzzling her neck, inhaling deeply her sweet scent. He clenched the gear shift tightly in frustration over his wayward thoughts. _I have to get a hold of myself! _

He felt the need to say something, to cover the awkward silence that hung thick between them, but he seemed at a loss of what to say. He gazed over at her, searching for a safe topic for them to discuss for the rest of the drive.

"Look out!" Aria shouted, suddenly sitting straight up in her seat, pointing out the front window.

Startled by her outburst, Ezra's head swiveled back. Just a few feet in front of them, a large opossum sat frozen in the middle of the street. Reacting instinctively, Ezra jerked the wheel hard to the right, slamming on the brakes. The rear tires fishtailed on the wet pavement as the car started to hydroplane down the road, spinning violently. Frantically attempting to regain control, he twisted the wheel in the opposite direction, aware of Aria bracing her arms against the console in front of her as they careened closer of the tree-lined side of the road. Unable to stop the momentum, Ezra watched in horror as the car veered off the street, down the steep embankment, continuing for a few more feet before coming to rest mere inches from a tree.

The headlights flickered several times and finally extinguished, engulfing the two of them in a darkness punctuated only by the occasional flash of lightening. There was an eerie, dead silence within the car, the rumbles of distant thunder a mocking applause to the spectacular crash. No longer impeded by the windshield wipers, the heavy rain continued to fall; a gray curtain shrouding the interior of the silent car.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the words of encouragement for continuing this story. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. Let me know what you think.**

Dead silence filled the car for several minutes until a small moan escaped Ezra's lips. He stretched his neck to the left and right attempting to loosen the tightened muscles that had tensed up during the crash. The darkness within the car was complete, being broken only by the occasional slash of lightning.

With a start, he suddenly realized there was no sound coming from the passenger side of the car.

"Aria," he called out softly, straining to see her within the black interior. His hands reached out tentatively until coming in contact with the side of her body. Grazing his fingers along her arm, he reached up to her face, stroking his hand along her cheek as he called out to her again.

"Aria?"

"Owww," she moaned, slowly turning her head in his direction. Her right hand raised to cradle the side of her head. "I think I hit my head," she said, rubbing the tender area.

"Let me see," Ezra ordered, his voice full of concern. Aria turned sideways in her seat until she was facing him. Both of his hands were cradling her face as he searched the area she had indicated.

"I don't know how you can see anything," Aria breathlessly replied. She felt an enjoyable tingle radiating up her spine as his fingers lightly stroked and danced across her skin.

"Well, you got a point there. But I don't feel any bumps and there doesn't appear to be any blood. Those are both good signs." Slowly he released her as he sat back in his seat, and reached in his back pocket for his cell phone.

"I'm going to call for help. There's no way this car is getting out of here without a tow truck." He stared at his phone in frustration as he realized he had no service. "Try your phone," he told Aria.

She pulled hers out of her pocket. "No bars," she sighed. She laughed ruefully to herself as she realized that that is exactly what she had wanted for the weekend. "Be careful what you wish for," she muttered softly under her breath.

"What?"

"Nothing." Listening to the rain beating against the roof of the car, she turned toward him. "What do we do now?"

"Well," Ezra glanced out the window at the rain. "It appears as if the storm is passing. I'm not sure how much farther it is to your cabin, but the turn off to mine was about a mile or two back down the road. I know we'll get soaked, but do you think you could walk it? The only other alternative would be to sit here for who knows how long hoping someone comes along."

Aria wasn't thrilled at the idea of walking through the chilled rain, but the alternative didn't sound any better. They had passed only one other vehicle the entire time they had been driving on the two-lane road. As the hour grew later, the chance that someone else would be driving by became less and less.

"I guess we're walking," she said, attempting to sound upbeat.

"Okay then, let me grab my stuff, and we'll head out."

As soon as Aria opened the door, she was immediately soaked by the downpour. The lightning might be letting up, but the rain seemed just as relentless. They struggled back up the embankment, both of them slipping several times in the mud. Ezra reached out to steady Aria and keep her from face planting in the sticky mess.

They walked in silence for quite a while, Aria hunched over, her arms wrapped tightly around her as her teeth chattered from the cold. _That damn jacket_ she thought to herself.

Looking over at her in concern, Ezra cursed the fact that he hadn't thought to keep an umbrella in his car. "I wish I had a coat to give you. I was planning on spending the entire weekend indoors writing, so I didn't pack one."

"I'm...okay," Aria squeaked out, attempting to keep her teeth from chattering as she answered.

"No you're not." Ezra himself was freezing, but he was more concerned about Aria. He knew they had to be fairly close to the cabin by now. He just hoped he could get her there before she ended up with pneumonia. It had been about ten minutes since they had turned down the road he indicated that eventually would lead to the cabin.

"For the sake of warmth, how's this?" he said, slipping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her against his side.

At that moment, Aria felt that she must have died in the crash and gone to heaven. The feel of Ezra's strong arm around her, his hip resting against hers as they walked, was sublime.

"Um, that's better, thanks," she said softly, hoping that he would attribute the catch in her voice to the cold and not to the sensations rippling through her body at his touch. She wouldn't dare tell him that, with his body just about as cold as hers, his arm offered little warmth. As far as she was concerned, they could walk like this for hours.

Despite that wish, within the next fifteen minutes, the dark outline of a small cabin started to come into view. Ezra fumbled in his pocket with his nearly frozen fingers to extract the key. Stepping up onto the porch, the key turned easily in the lock and they both entered the interior.

Groping against the wall, Ezra finally located the light switch and flipped it, illuminating a floor lamp next to the couch. The room looked comfortable and cozy compared to the downpour outside. He immediately noticed a fireplace on the far wall with a stack of firewood located next to it. The room was sparsely furnished with only a short couch and two chairs. It opened to the kitchenette where a small table and chairs was arranged against one of the front windows.

Walking across the room, Ezra ducked his head into the two doorways, one of which led to the small bathroom, and the other to the bedroom. _The bedroom_, Ezra thought to himself. One small double bed. _Guess I'll be sleeping on the couch tonight, or the floor, _he thought ruefully as he noticed that the couch wasn't any longer than a love seat.

The interior of the cabin was cool, and looking around Ezra didn't see a thermostat. Great, that meant no heat other than what he could generate from the fireplace. That needed to be priority number one to warm both Aria and himself up.

Aria, on the other hand, hadn't strayed too far into the room. She had closed the door behind them to prevent the rain from getting in, and walked over closer to the couch, standing near the single illuminated lamp.

Ezra flipped on the light in the kitchen and another lamp on the side table before turning his attention to the task at hand of making a fire. "There doesn't appear to be any heat. I need to get this fire going so we can warm up."

"That sounds great. I'm freezing," Aria replied, excited at the prospect of actually being warm and dry once again.

Ezra glanced over at her as he crumpled a sheet of newspaper that he was adding to the bottom of the fireplace. His fingers stilled and the breath caught in his throat at the site of her standing there. The rain that had been pelting them for the last half hour had left her soaked to the bone. Unfortunately for Ezra, he couldn't help but let his eyes drop from her face to the image of her white T-shirt that had been made almost transparent. The small, lacy bra that she wore underneath provided little covering, and left very little to his imagination. Her nipples made erect from the cold night air pushed invitingly against the material, as if urging him to reach out and caress them.

With great effort, he tore his gaze away, cleared his throat and turned back to the fireplace with renewed determination to finish the job.

"Why don't you go change clothes while I finish this up," he suggested, his voice deep and gruff. Swallowing deeply, he continued, "you'll catch your death of cold standing there drip-drying."

Aria cocked her head to the side, aware that something had just happened. She just wasn't sure what. For a split second there, she was almost sure she had seen a flicker of desire in his eyes.

"Um, I don't have any clothes, remember? My stuff got stolen?" Aria reminded him.

"That's right. Sorry." Standing up and wiping his hands on his pants, he walked over to his duffle bag. Rummaging through it he withdrew his only other T-shirt. "It's not much, but it's better than the soggy one you're wearing now." Ezra handed it to her, his eyes sweeping up, temporarily locking on her chest before flashing to her face. Just as quickly he dropped his gaze back down to the bag. "I don't think I have any pants though, sorry. I only brought one other pair of jeans and they would fall right off you."

"That's okay," she said, clutching his shirt to her chest. "What about pajama bottoms," she suggested.

"I don't use them."

"Oh." Aria couldn't help but flash on the image of him sleeping in bed. _Does he sleep in his underwear or nothing at all_, she wondered. The very thought warmed her more than any dry clothes could.

Taking the T-shirt, Aria entered the bathroom, closing the door softly behind her. As she turned around and faced the sink, her mouth dropped open at the image staring back at her from the mirror. He cheeks flamed as she realized how transparent her shirt was. She couldn't believe she had been standing in front of her teacher practically topless. And then she remembered the expression she had seen flicker across Mr. Fitz's face. Maybe he _had_ actually been excited at seeing her like that. A glimmer of heat stirred deep within Aria's belly.

Stripping out of her wet clothes, Aria lifted his shirt and slipped it over her head. She breathed in deeply the scent of laundry detergent, imagining his hands carefully folding the shirt and placing it in the bag earlier today. She shook her head in disbelief at what a strange turn of events this day had been.

She gathered her clothes and exited the room. By now, Ezra had successfully started the fire, and a nice warm glow was filling the small space. "Do you mind if I place some of my things by the fire to dry out?"

"No. Sure. Go right ahead," Ezra answered, attempting not to notice what a fetching view she was standing there barefoot, her legs exposed, with only his T-shirt covering her body. She draped her white shirt and jeans out on the hearth. And then, with a self-conscious sideways glance in his directions, added her bra to the line of wet clothes.

_Oh God,_ he groaned to himself, _she's not even wearing her bra! _If she had added her panties to that pile, he would probably have lost it. In an effort to rid himself of the image of what lay beneath that thin blue shirt, he kept reminding himself, _She's my student, she's my student, she's my student. _ He repeated it over and over until it turned into a cadence within his brain.

Abruptly rising from his chair, Ezra went over, unzipped his bag, and removed the paper bag containing the scotch he had purchased in Smithton. In the kitchen, he opened several of the cupboards searching for a glass until finally he found one resting in the back dusty corner of one cabinet. Taking it over to the sink, he turned on the water, intent on washing any dirt or dust out of the glass.

"Whoa!" His hand jerked back in surprise when the brown water seeped out of the faucet into the glass.

"That's disgusting!" Aria exclaimed.

Ezra jumped, surprised to find Aria directly behind him. He hadn't even heard her approach.

"Yeah, well, um," he moved over slightly to create more distance between them. "I'm sure it just needs to run a minute to clean the pipes out." He continued running the water which maintained its rusty color. After a minute, he shut off the tap and turned around, smiling sheepishly at her. "Maybe it needs a little longer than that."

Walking back over to the couch, he sat down, unscrewed the cap and tipped the bottle back, letting the amber liquid sear his throat. His eyes locked with Aria's over the top of the bottle. Lowering it slowly, he wiped his mouth self-consciously. "I don't usually make the practice of drinking liquor straight from a bottle," he explained. "That was the only glass I could find. I obviously need to put paper plates, silverware and cups on my list for tomorrow."

Aria came over and sat beside him on the small coach, carefully watching him. Ezra mentally kicked himself for sitting there. He should have chosen one of the chairs. That would have been safer. _Safer? Where did that thought come from?_

"Can I have some?" Aria suddenly asked, reaching out toward the bottle.

Surprised, Ezra shook his head, smiling slightly at her. "No. Nice try, but you're underage."

"True, but, I don't seem to have a lot of beverage choices," she reminded him teasingly, "and I'm thirsty."

Aware that she was going to need something to drink before they were able to get out of here tomorrow, he thought back over the choices. He didn't blame her for not wanting to drink the water. In fact, he wasn't even sure that it was healthy to drink. But could he do it? Could he just hand a bottle of alcohol to one of his students?

"It's not like I haven't had a drink before, Mr. Fitz," Aria said as if able to read his mind. "I won't tell anyone that you gave it to me, I promise. I think this whole situation is a little out of ordinary. Don't you think?" she asked, indicating the cabin around them.

Reluctantly, Ezra slowly nodded. "It's definitely that. I'm just not sure this is a good idea," he countered slowly, uneasy at the thought of being trapped in this cabin with this beautiful half-dressed woman _(girl, _he reminded himself). Add liquor to that mix? It sounded like a potentially dangerous situation.

Startled out of his thoughts, Ezra felt Aria's hand graze his as she reached for the neck of the bottle, pulling it slowly out of his grasp. His eyes watched as she lifted the bottle to her full lips and tilted it back so that the golden liquid poured into her mouth. Her eyes locked onto his as she took a couple of swallows before handing it back. "Now you don't have to feel so bad." At his perplexed looked, she explained. "You never offered it to me. I just took it. You're in the clear," she smiled broadly at him, feeling the effects of the scotch burn deep within her belly.

Ezra's breath hitched in his throat at the sight of the radiant smile that flashed across her face. How had he never noticed that smile before just now? _Oh God, it was going to be a long night._ He took a couple of more swallows from the bottle, before turning to stare into the fire. The flames seemed a safer distraction than what sat within arms' reach.

For several minutes they sat in fairly companionable silence, sharing the bottle between them. If it wasn't for the tension that he felt building between them, he would have been perfectly content to spend the evening doing nothing more than this. He was ashamed at the thoughts he was having but seemed powerless to stop them. He knew that if Aria had any idea that she was sitting so close to some guy that wanted nothing more than to turn and sweep her up into his arms, crushing his lips to hers, she would gladly run back out into the storm just to get away from him.

Aria's head was swimming from the alcohol humming through her body. She still couldn't believe that she was sitting on a couch in the middle of the woods in front of a crackling fire beside the teacher she'd had a crush on all year. She watched him out of the corner of her eye. With the late hour, the steady drumming of the rain, and the scotch he was drinking, she noticed that his eyes were starting to droop.

Stretching her legs out in front of her, Aria stood and walked over to the fireplace. The logs were burning low, the embers glowing bright red. She bent to retrieve a couple of pieces of wood and add them to the fire. She heard a soft groan behind her. Turning her head, with her long chestnut hair swaying and hanging in a soft curtain down her side, she looked back at Ezra. His eyes were locked onto her, burning brightly with barely contained desire.

Her breath caught in her throat at the blatant sensuality she felt radiating off his body.

"God, Aria, do you have to do that?" he moaned.

"What?" she replied, breathlessly.

Little did she realize the tantalizing view she had offered him of her red silk panties as she had bent to retrieve the wood. He was having a hard enough time as it was without her taunting him further with her body.

Staring silently at her for several minutes, he finally cleared his throat, shaking his head as he ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Nothing. Forget it."

Her heart was pounding in her chest. This time she was positive she had seen that look of desire cross his face. He was attracted to her, but seemed to be resisting the urge to act on it due to their circumstances. With frustration, she knew that she couldn't come right out and ask him to kiss her. _Should I just kiss him?_ As soon as the question entered her brain, she dismissed it. She knew herself well enough to know that there was no way she'd act on that. Alison might, but not her. That would take a boldness that she didn't possess.

"It's getting late, Aria. And I'm tired. Would you mind if we call it a night?"

Aria felt herself nodding even as she fought against the disappointment that she was feeling deep inside.

"You can take the bedroom and I'll just sleep out here. If you can let me use one of the blankets from the bed, I'll just make me a pallet here on the floor near the fire."

"Uh, sure," Aria replied, surprised at how quickly she was being dismissed.

She left the room and returned a minute later, her arms empty.

"There's only one blanket."

"Oh." Ezra looked down at the hard wooden floor, resigned to the fact that sleep might be hard to come by tonight. "You take it then. It will be a lot colder in the bedroom without the fire to keep you warm. It's pretty toasty in here already. I'll be fine without it."

"Okay," she replied weakly, smiling her appreciation.

"Good night, then," he prompted as she continued to stand in the doorway.

"Good night." Aria smiled weakly at him and then entered the bedroom, closing the door softly behind her.

Ezra threw several more pieces of wood onto the fire to keep it burning late into the night. Throwing a pillow from the couch onto the floor, he slipped off his soggy T-shirt and placed it on the hearth, his fingers brushing against the lacey bra before he reluctantly pulled them back. After hesitating for a few minutes, he finally pulled off his wet jeans too. There was no way he was going to get any sleep with those things on, and he rationalized that he would probably wake up long before Aria did and he'd be dressed before she came out.

He settled down on the hard wooden floor, thankful at least that it was warm, and willed himself to fall asleep. That was easier said than done. He placed his hands behind his head and stared at the pocked ceiling above him. His mind raced back over the events of the day. Part of him wished that he'd never set foot inside that diner. But yet, if he hadn't, what would have happened to Aria? He was glad that he had been there to help, but ever since then, his mind and body had been put through the ringer.

If he was honest with himself he'd have to admit that he had noticed her beauty long before today. He'd been well aware of the pretty girl that sat two rows over from the window in his classroom. But that's all she had been... a pretty girl. He rationalized to himself that it wasn't his fault if he'd noticed her shapely legs, her long wavy chestnut hair, the soft curve of her neck, her full plump lips. The way she usually dressed screamed for attention. Frustrated, he closed his eyes as he felt his body begin to twitch in response to the images floating through his mind.

"Mr. Fitz?"

His eyes snapped open as he quickly turned on his side, attempting to disguise any evidence of his arousal. With no covering available, he lay there in his boxers, staring up at Aria.

"What? Do you need something, Aria?"

She cocked her head to the side. _What's going on? He's acting almost... guilty._ Her eyes dipped down to his bare chest, appreciatively raking over the muscles that rippled and appeared to dance in the flickering light. She knew she shouldn't be staring, but as her eyes traveled lower, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to run her hands boldly under the waistline of those boxers.

"It's cold in there. Even with the blanket I'm freezing. Can I... is it alright if I sleep out here?"

Ezra's body froze at the thought of the two of them sleeping so close together, both of them barely clothed. His mind screamed at him that this was wrong... on a hundred and one counts, this was a bad idea. And yet, he certainly couldn't demand her to go back to a room that was cold and uncomfortable. Maybe he should go?

"Um..."

Before he could say anything more, Aria interrupted. "I know it might seem a little strange, but this whole situation is strange. Like I said earlier, I'm cool with keeping this entire weekend just between the two of us. No one has to know anything. No one else would understand what the two of us have been through."

"Um," Ezra started again.

"I'm sorry to have just burst in here like this. I didn't even stop to think that you might be... undressed, but I don't want you to worry about that. I've seen guys before in their underwear. It's no big deal," she rushed to add, attempting to put him at ease.

_She has? What did that mean?_ The image of Aria locked in an embrace with some high school jock came flooding into Ezra's mind.

"My dad and my brother, Mike are always walking around in their boxers on the weekend."

Ezra felt his body relax at her explanation. He hated to admit it to himself, but the image of her being with another guy had twisted something deep within his gut.

"It can't be that comfortable sleeping on a hard wooden floor," Aria continued. "At least by sharing the blanket we could put half of it under us for cushion and then cover ourselves with the rest." Aria stared at him expectantly, her eyes large as saucers.

Trapped in her wide-eyed pleading gaze, Ezra found himself nodding his ascent, unable to form any words. _No! No! _his rational mind screamed at him.

Ezra scooted over, allowing her room to spread the blanket out, throwing a couple of pillows at one end. She lay down, her hair cascading over the edges of the pillow as she gazed over at him, waiting for him to move closer.

Reluctantly, he found himself moving onto the blanket, his head resting mere inches from her. He tried to maintain as much distance between them as he could. He wasn't sure he had breathed since she had entered the room.

"Are you going to pull the blanket over us?" Aria asked, wondering why he was laying there so stiffly. _Is he that appalled at the idea of sleeping beside me?_

Grabbing the far edge of the blanket, Ezra pulled it over them, finding that it was falling short of completely covering Aria.

"I think we need to get a little closer," she suggested, "so that the blanket will cover me."

As if his body was being pulled by some invisible magnet, Ezra scooted near her, feeling their arms touch each other, the smell of her shampoo teasing his nose. With their closer proximity, the blanket was able to reach the far side of Aria. Still not completely satisfied, she turned on her side, her back toward Ezra. The hand he had resting at his side brushed against her ass. As if burned by an electric shock, Ezra jerked it away. "Sorry," he muttered under his breath, his cheeks burning at the guilt from the sudden desire that had shot through his body.

"That's better," she murmured as she burrowed into the pillow, attempting to get comfortable. The heat from the fire fanned across her face. Between the fire and their trapped body heat, she was finally comfortably warm. She had no doubt she could fall asleep here.

Ezra remained still, afraid to make the slightest move lest he make contact once again with her body. After several minutes, he could hear her soft slow breaths and determined that she had already fallen asleep. There was no way it was going to be that easy for him. He needed to try to create some more distance between the two of them. Maybe if he turned on his side too, he rationalized, that would put a gap between the two of them.

Slowly he shifted his weight onto his hip. Attempting not to wake her, he slowly rotated until he found himself on his side, staring at the back of her head. He let out a sigh of relief at the distance that had been created between them. It might not be much, but it was better than it had been.

What he hadn't realized is that as he had readjusted his position, he had accidentally pulled the blanket partly off Aria. In her drowsy state, she reached up and grabbed the edge of the blanket, attempting to pulled it over her. She snuggled down into the limited covers, inadvertently moving her body closer to Ezra's.

In shock, he found Aria's body molded to his...a perfect fit in this spooned position. With him being trapped on the inside portion of the blanket, there was no way to extract himself from the situation. Again Aria attempted to snuggle deeper in the covers, her ass rubbing against his body in a delicious manner. Immediately Ezra felt his body respond.

_This is going to be along night,_ Ezra thought in agony. _Why didn't I turn to face the other way? _he admonished himself. He attempted to think about anything other than the female cradled against his body. It took about an hour, but finally, out of complete exhaustion, Ezra drifted off to sleep. As he did, his arm casually dropped over Aria's hip, the two of them warmly cocooned within the blanket. The fire continued to crackle in the hearth while the steady rain droned against the tin roof of the small cabin.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks so much for the positive reviews! I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story. These two characters are obviously my favorite to write about. Let me know what you think about this latest chapter. Things are about to get tense!**

Aria's dreams that night were filled with images of the car wreck, visualizing over and over losing control, the car spinning down the road before crashing over the embankment. Every time the beginning of the dream remained constant, but the ending always changed. Sometimes Mr. Fitz was injured, laying there bleeding and unconscious as she desperately shook him and yelled his name. Sometimes it was her, her body frozen and unresponsive. She'd be aware of Mr. Fitz's hands on her face, stroking her cheek, and yet she was unable to call out and tell him she was okay. Whimpering in her sleep, Aria buried herself deeper within the blanket, seeking comfort and warmth from these disturbing and haunting images.

And yet, despite the alarming apparitions, her dreams would soon morph into images of the two of them alone in the cabin. In every single one of them, she eventually found herself within Mr. Fitz's arms, their lips locked together as they clung to each other in a tight embrace. Her breath nearly crushed from her body from the intense hold they had on each other. His strong, warm hand slowly caressed her side, tickling her hip and waist as he rubbed against her arm. Teasing her, he would trail his fingertips ever so slowly upward until finally he was boldly cupping her breast. With this simple touch, Aria's nipple immediately hardened in response as his thumb rubbed against the sensitive nub. Arching into his hand, her body pressed again him, yearning for more.

As his hands continued to explore, she rubbed wantonly against him, reveling in the feel of his growing erection proving that he was just as consumed by the passion between them as she was. A low moan escaped her parted lips as his thumb and forefinger pinched her nipple before traveling back down her body, resting lightly on her hip where the edge of the T-shirt had ridden up. Dancing with feather softness under the fabric, his fingers brushed against the edge of her panties before moving upward, raking the fabric out of his way as he brazenly traveled.

Aria's eyes slowly fluttered open, reluctant to leave the sensual dream behind. Her body still tingled and hummed from the feel of his hands against her. She found herself staring at the smoky remnants of a fire long put out. Her mind was foggy from her sleep and the wickedly sexual dreams, and it took her a moment to remember where she was. As the events from yesterday came crashing back, her eyes suddenly opened wide, realizing that the residual feeling tingling through her, was actually not a ghostly impression of her hidden desires. With a hitch in her breath, Aria became acutely aware of the fact that the images of her last dream, where not a dream at all.

The man pressed against her back was none other than her English teacher, Mr. Fitz. Not only was she sleeping in a very compromising position with him, but she was acutely aware of his hand that was dancing across her rib cage coming closer and closer to her breast. Aria dared not breath. Part of her knew that she should move away, or push his hand off her, but the sensations that were rippling through her body couldn't be ignored. What she had thought to be a dream was reality. What she had dreamed about during the school year, was now an actuality. Dare she stop him?

With a sudden gasp, Aria felt his hand boldly encircle her breast, his thumb brushing across her already swollen nipple, causing her body to unconsciously jerk as she arched and pressed her ass against him, clearly feeling his hardening erection. Without any conscious decision she began to move her body against his, rubbing her body softly up and down, causing his arousal to increase.

Her full lips parted as she began to pant in reaction to the myriad of emotions coursing through her. She knew they shouldn't be doing this, but her body seemed disconnected from her mind. She was already aroused by her dreams, or earlier desires, and there was no way she was going to put a stop to this. Her eyes fluttered halfway shut as she concentrated fully on the sensations he was creating as his hands continued to explore her body. She wanted nothing more than to turn in his arms and plant her lips against his.

_Crash!_

A large crack reverberated throughout the room as something heavy landed on the tin roof above their heads. Both of them jerked in surprise. Ezra's eyes popped open in shock and bewilderment, attempting to determine what had woken him and where he was. He immediately became aware of the fact that his hand was resting on a bare breast, and that he was staring at the back of a female with long chestnut hair. He also became acutely aware of the erection between his legs that was pressed tightly against the aforementioned girl. His mind frantically attempted to grapple with the situation, looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings.

As his hand stilled, Aria realized that he was awake. She slowly turned over until she was resting on her back, her head turned toward Ezra. Reality settled heavily on his shoulders as the events from the night before echoed through his mind and he realized the compromising situation they were in and where his hand still rested. With shocking speed, he snapped his hand out of her shirt and shimmied out of the blanket. Maybe that wasn't the best decision, because he immediately felt Aria's eyes drop to the very evident erection that was now so prominently displayed before her eyes.

Choosing to ignore the awkward situation in which they now found themselves, and unwilling to dwell too deeply on the gorgeous image of Aria laying before him with her sleep-tousled hair, drowsy eyes, and full lips, Ezra focused instead on the sharp noise that had startled him awake.

"What was that?" he asked, his voice sharper than he meant for it to be as he attempted to appear in charge and not shaken by what had just occurred.

"What was what?" Aria asked, somewhat surprised that he wasn't wanting to talk about what had just happened. Or was that the _that _he was talking about?

"That loud noise," he persisted, looking around the room, unable to make eye contact with her as guilt came crashing down on him like a heavy weight.

"Oh," she said, somewhat disappointed. "I don't know. It sounded like it came from the roof." Aria and Ezra both stared up at it as if able to see through the rafters to what lay beyond.

"I guess I better go check it out," he said as he grabbed his jeans off the hearth and hurriedly slipped them on. He turned his back to her as he zipped them up, wincing slightly at the discomfort created by the tightness of his still somewhat erect status. In all honesty, he wasn't really too concerned about what had caused the noise, but it was a convenient excuse to escape from her presence. He felt an almost uncontrollable urge to bolt from the cabin and run as far away as he could until he collapsed with fatigue.

When he opened the front door, the pelting rain swept into the room. "Unbelievable. I can't believe it's still coming down," he muttered under his breath before hurrying outside.

When the door closed, Aria collapsed back again the pillow, squeezing her eyes shut momentarily before opening them to stare blindly at the ceiling. _I can't believe what just happened!_ Part of her insides were flipping with joy as a jolt rippled through her body as she remembered the touch of his hands against her skin. The other half of her cringed at the idea of having to face him, to carry on a conversation with him, after what had just occurred. _Will I ever be able to look at him as just my teacher again?_ She doubted it.

Outside, Ezra leaned against the wall, catching his breath attempting to clear his thoughts. _What am I going to do? _The thought ran through his head on repeat. And yet, as much as he tried not to, he couldn't help but remember the feel of her breast beneath his hand, how perfectly she fit within his palm. Groaning in defeat, he turned around, throwing his hands up against the wall as he pushed against it, almost as if attempting to physically shove the cabin and Aria from his mind. _I'm going to be fired. I'm going to jail. Why did I give in? Why did my body betray me?_

Although Ezra knew he'd been asleep (at least for the most part) when things had played out, he knew that wouldn't make a different to the school board. Hell, he shouldn't have been in that predicament in the first place. Why in the world did he think it would be okay for the two of them to sleep side by side? _It was the alcohol. It had to be the scotch_, he decided. Who even knew how far things had been taken? What if he'd... No, he couldn't even go there.

Grunting in frustration, he ran a hand through his ragged hair, damp from the blowing mist of the rain. He dreaded having to step back in the cabin and face her... to admit to her what he'd done and fall on her mercy... mercy that he didn't deserve.

Aria glanced over at the door wondering what was taking Mr. Fitz so long. Was something really wrong with roof? Should she go check on him? She looked down at herself and realized that she was still wearing the T-shirt he had loaned her the night before. Should she lay there and wait for him to return, or should she get up and get dressed?

Laughing ruefully she knew it was foolish to believe that if she just lay there long enough, he'd finish whatever he was doing outside, come back in and rejoin her under the covers. He had made it abundantly clear with the look on his face and how quickly he had snatched his hand away, that he was appalled at what he had done. Obviously he had been acting on a dream, just as she had thought she was.

Aria couldn't help but wonder who he was dreaming about. When he had been touching her body, was he thinking about someone else? _Did he think he'd been caressing his girlfriend instead of me?_ The thought sickened her... the idea of her being a stand in from someone else. The idea that he would do those things, his body react that way to someone else, caused a streak of jealousy to twist and churn in her stomach.

Slowly, Aria got up, smoothing out the blanket as she began folding it before placing it on the couch. Reaching down she grabbed one of the pillows, the one Ezra had used. Bringing it up to her face, she inhaled deeply, attempting to capture the scent of him that lingered on the cotton surface. _What's wrong with me? He obviously doesn't care about me, so why am I still so fixated on him?_

The door burst open with a sudden gust of wind; Mr. Fitz stumbling inside before slamming it securely shut behind him. He stomped his feet several times and shook the rain out of his hair before his body froze... his eyes trained on Aria. Aria clutched the pillow close to her body, her eyes wide, as she watched the whirlwind he created as he stumbled into the room.

The entire speech that Ezra had prepared and somewhat rehearsed outside went out the window as he stared over at her. What a sexy image she made, he thought, standing there in that old, thin T-shirt of his that barely covered her upper thighs. He remembered the feel of her body pressed against his, and he dug his nails into the side of his leg to distract himself from that mental image. Her slim dainty legs were exposed to his view, and he couldn't prevent his eyes from slowly traveling all the way from her fire-red toenails up to her expressive hazel eyes that were opened wide in... what?... fear? trepidation? Distaste?

Aria's heart clenched at the site of him standing there, his bare chest cascading droplets of rain that traveled down his stomach before disappearing from her view. Her eyes opened wide as the unbidden thought came crashing into her mind that she wanted nothing more than to run her burning tongue along his stomach and quench her thirst with those same drops of rain.

They stared silently at each other for several minutes, both lost in their own thoughts, before Ezra finally cleared his throat, running a nervous hand through his wet hair before wiping it on his jeans.

"You're wet... again," Aria needlessly stated.

"Yeah, apparently so," he agreed. "This rain seems relentless."

The uncomfortable and awkward silence between them continued. Ezra finally turned and made his way over to the kitchen and ran the tap, frowning as the brown liquid poured out of the pipes.

"I'm going to let this run for a few minutes and hopefully clear. Then I'm going to make us some coffee." Turning around to look at her, he leaned back against the sink. "The two of us obviously need to talk, and I think it would be better if we could sit down and do it over a hot cup of coffee."

"Yeah. We do," Aria said softly, continuing to stare at him with her large, doe-like eyes. Ezra was beginning to wonder if she ever blinked. He hadn't noticed if she had. She appeared to just keep staring at him, condemning him with her hurt, Bambi expression. _How could I have acted like such an idiot?_ he chastised himself for the umpteenth time that morning.

"I think it'd probably be best if, while we're waiting on this to hopefully clear," he said indicating the water that was substantially more translucent that it had been a few minutes ago, "and the coffee to be made, that you go get dressed."

Aria tossed the pillow she was still holding onto the couch and stared down at the T-shirt she was wearing. Part of her hated the idea of taking it off. At least this way, she still had a part of him that she could hold onto. She had no doubt that as soon as they had their talk and he explain to her what a big mistake he'd made, he'd push her out the door as quick as he could so she could go to her cabin and he'd be rid of her.

Not giving away any of her inner thoughts, Aria simply weakly smiled and nodded her head. "Yeah, I guess you're right." Walking over to the hearth, she bent down to retrieve her shirt, bra, and jeans, unintentionally giving Ezra yet again another flash of her red panties.

Quickly averting his eyes, he turned back to the sink, his fingers digging into the edge of the counter as he unsuccessfully attempted to clear his mind of the image of her standing there, bent over, with the tantalizing patch of red flashing before his eyes. He couldn't help but wonder how that little slip of silk would feel under his fingertips. And then another nagging thought slipped in... did he already know? How far had things really gone during the night?

Rummaging through the cabinets, he located an old dented tea kettle and filled it with the now clear water. Attempting to distract himself, he set about heating it up and foraging through the meager supplies he had brought and pulling out the can of instant coffee. He hoped she liked it black, because he hadn't thought to bring any milk or sugar.

As the kettle finally began to whistle, Ezra heard the bedroom door open and turned to see Aria exit, fully dressed with her hair pulled back and secured by a clip. With what appeared, to his eyes, to be apprehension, she perched on the far chair at the table and watched as he moved about the kitchen.

"I found a couple of mugs," he said, holding them up for her to see. "I don't know why I didn't see them last night. They were in the same cupboard as the tea pot."

Aria smiled and nodded at him as he nervously prattled on while he poured the hot water over the coffee granules in the mugs. Placing the steaming mugs on the table, he held up the improvised stirrer, an unsharpened pencil. "Mind if we share this?" he asked, smiling apologetically that he didn't have any spoons.

"That's fine," she said as she waited for him to finish stirring his coffee. As she reached for the pencil, their fingers grazed each other, and an electric shock pulsed through her body. Her eyes immediately snapped up to his, finding his azure blue gaze fixed steadily on her.

"I think it's time we talk," he said, his voice soft, deep and thick with some undisclosed emotion.

Aria felt a ripple of fear and excitement course through her. Her body was tingling from his touch, and the gaze he had locked on her seemed primal and almost predatory. "I think it is," she whispered, her voice feather soft.


	4. Chapter 4

**I want to thank everyone so much for the reviews from the last chapter! Things between Aria and Ezra are never easy, but they're always worth it in the end. I hope you guys enjoy this new chapter. Please let me know what you think.**

Ezra cleared his throat several times, ill at ease to begin the conversation. He shifted in his seat awkwardly, his mouth unwilling to form the words that he knew he had to say. Glancing over at Aria, she sat there, poised on the edge of her seat as if at any moment she was ready to take flight. _Is she that afraid of me now?_

"We obviously need to talk about last night. And we also need to make some plans as to what happens from here." His voice sounded stilted to his own ears.

Aria's breath caught in her throat. _Make plans from here? Could he actually be saying that he wants to pursue something with me?_Her heart flittered at the idea that maybe, possibly, he was actually interested in her.

Meeting her expectant gaze, he took a deep breath and plunged ahead before he lost his nerve. "I want to start out by apologizing for last night."

With that single statement, a sheet of ice encased all Aria's hopes. Obviously he was regretting what had happened between the two of them.

"I knew it was a mistake for us to sleep so close, but there seemed to be no alternative. Or maybe I just didn't give it enough thought. I should have come up with something," he muttered, berating himself under his breath. When she continued to just stare at him with her large, expressive eyes filled with hurt and... were those tears? he rushed to continue, "that's no excuse for my actions. It was wrong. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable. _If_ I made you uncomfortable," he repeated, laughing without mirth. "How could I _not _have made you uneasy... being accosted by one of your teachers while you slept. It's inexcusable."

Aria's head dropped down, the wispy tendrils escaping the clasp cascading around her in a soft cloud. "It... it wasn't like that," she said so softly Ezra almost didn't hear.

"I know. We were both asleep, and not really in full control of what we were doing, but that's no excuse. I want you to know that I'm not trying to make excuses for my actions. When I became aware of where my... and the fact that I was..." He let the sentence fall off awkwardly, his cheeks growing flushed as his mind flashed back to his erection pressed tightly against her and the sensation of her firm nipple rubbing against his palm. Forcing the erotic thoughts from his mind, he hurriedly continued, "I just want you to know that I'm so sorry that I violated your trust in me as your teacher."

Shaking her head slightly, Aria licked her lips and raised her eyes to gaze nervously at him. "I wasn't exactly thinking of you as my teacher at the time. I wasn't totally innocent either."

Somewhat shaken by her admission, Ezra didn't really know where to go with that statement. Had more happened than he knew? Had _she_ done something to _him_? His stomach dropped at the thought of things having gone further between the two of them than he knew. And yet, a small part of him, quivered at the idea of this girl locked in his embrace.

Shaking his head once again to clear the random and dangerous thoughts loose, he continued. "So, are we okay? I don't want there to be any misunderstandings before we go back to Rosewood."

Nodding in agreement, Aria hesitated before responding. "Are you... are you concerned about your girlfriend finding out? I won't say anything, I swear."

"No, it's not that. I don't have a girlfriend," he said dismissively. "I'm concerned about the school board, the principal, your parents," he said, staring at her pointedly.

With the confirmation that he had no girlfriend, Aria felt as if her heart had been suddenly liberated. _So he wasn't thinking of someone else last night. Does that mean he was thinking of me while his hands were on my body? Is that why he's so upset, because he's attracted to one of his students and thinks that he shouldn't be? _The very idea gave her a glimmer of hope. If the only obstacle between them was the fact that he was finding it difficult to get past the idea that she was his student, all she had to do was help him temporarily forget. _Am I crazy to think that he might actually care?_

Realizing that he was waiting for her to speak, she flashed a reassuring smile at him. "As I said yesterday, as far as I'm concerned, this weekend is just between the two of us. _Whatever _may happen here, no one ever needs to know."

Ezra cocked his head slightly to the side, his brows drawn together in puzzlement. There seemed to be more to her statement than what appeared on the surface, but he wasn't sure what she was implying. "Okay," he responded slowly, "I agree."

Aria's smile began to unnerve him, as if she knew some secret he didn't. "Well, with that out of the way, the next thing we need to talk about is where we go from here."

"Hmm, do you have something in mind?" she asked hopefully, taking another sip of the bitter, hot coffee, looking at him over the rim.

"We have a couple of options." Gazing out the kitchen window, he frowned as the rain continued to pour down the sides of the roof. "This rain doesn't look like it's letting up any time soon. Unfortunately, neither of us have an umbrella or rain coat."

"True that," Aria replied, content to stay right where she was. Whether or not he was actually interested in her, the idea of spending more time with him definitely appealed to her. When would she get another opportunity like this?

"So, option one is, since neither of us is getting cell service, I hike back to town and arrange for a tow truck and rent a car for the weekend."

"There's a problem with that plan," Aria countered. "No car rental agency in town. Trust me, I know."

"Okay, well, I can always arrange for the tow truck and I can pay him to pick me back up or deliver the car to me on Tuesday once it's fixed."

"Possibly. If you're lucky enough to find somewhere that's open on the holiday weekend. It's a pretty small town. What happens if you hike all that way for nothing? It has to be at least fifteen miles from here."

Perturbed at her shooting down his idea, he changed directions. "Okay, then there's option two. We both leave here and I walk you to your cabin. That way you can enjoy the rest of your weekend in, I'm sure, a much more comfortable cabin where there's central heat, and all the amenities you need."

"Um," Aria looked at the sheet of rain covering the panes. "It's pouring and I'm not thrilled at the idea of getting wet again, and if we do go, we're not even sure how far the cabin is from here. I'm pretty sure that it's even farther away than the town is. Right?"

"Then what do you suggest," Ezra asked grumpily. "Instead of just shooting down my ideas, why don't you come up with one of your own?"

"Okay," Aria said, scrunching her brow, deep in thought. "I know it's not what either of us originally planned, but I think we should just sit tight, stay here, at least until this rain is gone, and make the best of it."

"And what if it rains all day?" Ezra countered.

"Then, I guess I'll stay the night again," she said slowly, her gaze locked onto him.

Ezra stared at her, mortified at the idea of having to spend another night alone in this cabin with her. They'd already had one close call. There was no way he could sleep beside her again. They both should have learned that lesson.

"You've got to be kidding," was all he said.

Feeling a little hurt by his rebuke, but refusing to be swayed by his response, Aria continued, "what are the odds of it actually raining all day?" Of course, if Aria had her way, it would continue raining so hard that Noah would be out chopping wood for his ark. She had never been so happy to see rain. As long as it was coming down, she could use it as an excuse to stay here. And as long as she was in this cabin, isolated with Mr. Fitz, the possibility existed that _maybe_ something could spark between the two of them. Her mind flashed back to the feel of his body pressed against her, his hand on her breast. If there was a chance that she could get that back, she had to try.

Ezra wasn't thrilled with Aria's suggestion, but logically he knew it was crazy to attempt to walk to her cabin when they had no idea the actual distance from here. "Okay, we'll wait a little while and see if the rain lets up," he agreed reluctantly.

Pleased, Aria sat back in the chair, sipping her acrid coffee. She wrinkled her nose slightly at the bitter taste. She preferred hers with lots of hazelnut creamer and sweetener.

Hoping to bring a little normalcy to their situation, Ezra walked over to the couch and pulled out his laptop. "If you don't mind, I'm going to try and get a little writing done. That was my whole point in coming out here."

"No, that's fine with me, Mr. Fitz. I can..." Aria looked around the small cabin, attempting to find something that she could occupy herself with while he worked.

Realizing what she was doing, he pulled a book out of his bag. "I can't offer you any options, but you're welcome to borrow my book. And as long as we're here, I guess you can call me Ezra."

Reaching out, Aria took the book, allowing her fingers to brush against his. "Thanks... Ezra," she said slowly, tasting his name on her tongue. "Wuthering Heights," she read out loud, cocking her brow as she looked up at him.

"Yeah, I know. It's not very original, but it's one of my favorites. Every once in a while I pull it back out to read."

"No, I love it," she hastily said. "It's one of my favorites too. I'm just surprised, that's all."

Tilting his head, his blue eyes locked onto her. "Surprised? Why?"

Meeting his gaze, her lips curled into a sensual smile. "I just didn't know you were such a romantic."

Clearly flustered and embarrassed by the sudden electric charge in the atmosphere around them, Ezra turned and headed back to the kitchen table. "I just like the imagery," he muttered under his breath.

Chuckling lightly, clearly not believing him, she opened the well-worn cover to chapter one and sat down on the couch, curling her legs under her as she settled into the book.

Stretching his neck, Ezra looked down at his watch and was surprised to see that several hours had passed since he sat down to write. He had wondered if he'd even be able to concentrate with Aria around, but was pleasantly surprised to find that she had been engrossed in the book and hadn't said a word to him since he had started working.

Looking over at the couch, his lips turned up into a soft smile as he saw her curled on the couch, the book laying open at her side. Her eyes were closed, long, dark lashes brushing her cheeks as her chest rose and fell softly and slowly, clearly signifying the fact that she had fallen asleep.

Rising from his position, Ezra went over to stand in front of the couch. He gazed down at her, raking his eyes over the long, softly curling locks that had come free from her pony tail. He fought against the sudden impulse to reach out and twine one of those wayward tendrils around his finger. Her sweet full lips were curled into a small, half smile. Clearly she was having a pleasant dream. He flashed back to last night and the dream he had thought he was having that had crashed into this reality. Somewhat disturbed by the remembrance of last night and the desire he had to reach out toward her, he turned his back to stare at the ashy remains of last night's fire.

Looking down at the small pile of wood on the side of the hearth, he knew that it wouldn't last the night. Plus, with the rain and cloudy conditions outside, he knew that it would be getting chilly inside before too long. He had noticed a fairly large pile of wood on the front porch, but with the blowing rain, the wood would be damp and difficult to burn. The first thing he needed to do was move some of it inside so it could dry out.

Walking over to the door, he was met with a gust of wind as he opened it and stepped out onto the porch. It didn't take long before he could feel the rain soaking through his shirt as he picked up several pieces of wood and carried them back into the cabin. He repeated the process several times until a comfortably large pile was located on the floor next to the hearth.

Staring down at the stack of wood, droplets of water cascaded off his shirt and pooled around his feet. Realizing that his other T-shirt was now available to him since Aria wasn't wearing it, he stripped the wet one off and set it by the fireplace so it could dry out once the fire was started.

"You're wet... yet again."

Ezra slowly turned around, surprised to find Aria awake. She lay exactly as she had before, except now her large eyes were open wide, traveling down from his own startled glance, taking in the full expanse of his broad, bare chest. Standing before her with her gaze raking over his body, Ezra suddenly felt very exposed. Not only that, but his body immediately tensed as his eyes lowered and locked onto her parted lips. An overwhelming urge rolled through him to take the two necessary steps to sever the distance between them and gather her in his arms.

Squeezing his hands tightly into fists, and using all his willpower, he turned away from her, quickly grabbing the dry T-shirt and slipping it over his head. "Yeah, it's still coming down pretty heavily out there," he said casually, attempting to ignore the tension that seemed to fill the small space between them.

Sitting up, Aria looked down at her hands, fighting the disappointment she felt as he walked away from her. Her eyes watched as he crossed to the kitchen, opening cupboards as he took out a small pan and filled it with water.

Rising slowly from the couch, Aria made her way over to the kitchen, perching on the table as she watched him moving around, keeping himself busy. Reaching beside her, she grabbed the abandoned scotch bottle from last night, unscrewed the cap and took a deep swallow before lowering it. Wiping her mouth, she looked beyond Ezra at the gloomy dusk outside.

"Well, with this relentless rain, it looks like we're stuck together again tonight," she said, attempting to sound nonchalant.

Ezra looked over at her, his eyes lowering to the bottle clutched in her hand, but he refrained from commenting on it. What did it matter? He had already condoned her drinking last night. How could he now turn around and tell her she shouldn't do it?

"Yeah, you might be right," he said, gently pulling the bottle out of her hand. He tilted it to his lips and felt the heat of the amber liquid pouring down his throat. Smiling at her, he set it back on the table before holding up the package of Ramen Noodles that he had pulled out of his bag earlier. "It might not be gourmet, but we haven't had anything to eat. How about an early dinner of peanut butter crackers and cooked noodles?"

Laughing at the strange combination, she nodded. "Well, I had that last night too, but I guess I can stand it again."

"Technically, we didn't have any dinner last night. Whatever you ate at the diner, was long before dinner time."

"Well, that would be just a cup of coffee that I was thought was pretty bad until I tasted yours this morning."

"Hey!" Ezra said, grabbing the bottle and taking another taste before continuing. "it wasn't that bad."

"Not at all, if you were going to tar the roof with it," she replied, smiling as she grabbed the bottle back and helped herself to another large shot. By now, she was starting to feel the mellow effects of the alcohol as it coursed through her body.

"I'm offended. I offer to share my meager rations with you, and this is the thanks I get," Ezra replied, pretending to be offended.

Aria giggled slightly as she titled the bottle back for another swallow. Some of the liquid splashed out and dripped from her mouth and down her chin. Before she could react, Ezra impulsively reached out with his thumb and wiped it away. Aria sat frozen, unable to breath, as she stared up at him, shocked by his unexpected touch.

Ezra was just as surprised as she was. He had had no intention of reaching out. His fingers had acted of their own volition. And yet... he seemed incapable of removing them. His eyes were riveted to her mouth as his thumb traced over her plump lower lip. Slowly raising his eyes, he locked onto her hungry gaze, and, like a moth to a flame, he found his head lowering toward her until his mouth hovered above hers. Part of his mind was screaming at him_, Stop! Back away! Run while you still have the chance_! and yet, he was powerless to do so.

Almost as if he was a bystander to his own body, Ezra could see himself softly pressing his lips to hers and immediately, a powerful current pulsed through his body as they connected. Aria's mouth was warm and supple beneath his, and when she willingly parted her lips, his tongue immediately darted in as he deepened the kiss.

Her hands reached up and around his neck, pulling him closer to her. She felt an uncontrollable urge to press her body as tightly against him as she could, to feel every contour of his body against her. Her head was swimming as she drowned in the sensations ricocheting through her. She wasn't sure if it was from the alcohol, Ezra's touch, or both. The kisses were growing in intensity as their tongues entwined, the taste of scotch heavy between them. She brazenly wrapped her legs around his waist, trapping him tightly against her, as her hands gripped fistfuls of his shirt, tugging it up slightly, eager to feel the bare skin of his back.

Ezra's long tapered fingers curled around Aria's neck, twining in the escaping locks of her hair, crushing her to him as he kissed her repeatedly. Finally releasing her swollen lips, his mouth traveled down her cheeks to her neck, peppering kisses from one side to the other, before resting at the juncture between her neck and shoulder, licking and sucking the spot as her nails dug into his back. His other hand curled around her back, pulling her tightly against him, grinding his pelvis against her.

Wantonly reacting to the bulge Aria felt pressed against her inner thighs, she rotated her hips, her body attempting to connect to his in the most basic and primal way. A low, deep moan escaped her throat as she threw her head back, reveling in ecstasy as he continued devouring her neck with his caressing tongue.

As Ezra's brain processed the sound of Aria's cries and moans, his body wanted nothing more than to react in the most carnal way. His fingers itched to tear off her clothing, to expose her body to his view and his heated touch. He wanted to bury himself within her, and pleasure both of them until neither one of them would be capable of walking. And yet, when she cried out, Ezra's mind registered the fact that he was here, in the woods, and the woman wrapped in his arms was none other than one of his students.

His lips raised from her soft, silken skin and he tore his body away from her as if he'd been burned, backing up unsteadily as they both regarded each other from the growing distance. They were both breathing heavily, eyes wide with shock and desire, as they stared at each other, both unable to speak.

Seeing Aria sitting there, her legs still slightly parted, chest heaving with her deep breaths, eyes darkened with her desire, Ezra felt sick to his stomach. _How could I have done this?_ His mind was wracked with guilt over his actions. _How could you not have done this?_ Whispered another part of his mind as his eyes roamed over her face, settling on her swollen mouth.

As she bit her bottom lip, his eyes locked onto hers. "I'm so sorry," his voice cracked with pain and regret as he suddenly rushed past her, tearing open the front door and disappearing out into the darkening woods, quickly obscured by the downpour.

Blinking rapidly several times as she attempted to wrap her mind around everything that had just happened, Aria sat there immobile. Slowly her hand reached up to touch her lips, lips that were still swollen and tender from his crushing kisses. She had always wondered and fantasized what it would be like to kiss him, but the reality went far beyond anything she could have imagined. Her body had reacted to his all on its own. With every touch, every kiss, she wanted more. Even now, an emptiness was surrounding her, as if a part of her was missing. Despite how wrong the entire situation was, it had felt so right. And she knew he had thought so too.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Aria jumped down from the table, walking briskly over to the door. Peering out into the gloomy twilight, she could barely make out the darkening silhouette of a lone figure walking briskly down the drive away from the cabin. How far would be actually go? _Would he really walk all the way back to town just to get away from me?_

Despite the heavy downpour, Aria stepped off the porch, immediately finding herself soaked by the relentless rain. Disregarding the pelting drops stinging her face, she found herself sprinting down the drive, desperately attempting to catch up with Ezra before he disappeared from her sight. She couldn't escape the feeling that if she let him walk away from her now, she'd lose him forever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Wow! I want to thank all you guys for the reviews and the encouragement to continue with this story! I hope you enjoy this latest chapter. Let me know what you think.**

Aria's feet slipped inside her wet shoes as she ran down the gravel drive, wiping the rain out of her blurry eyes. "Ezra!" her voice reached out to the distance figure that was approaching a bend in the road and threatening to disappear from her view. Either the wind was carrying her voice away, or he was ignoring her, because he continued his unfaltering pace as he neared the end of the drive. Determined to not give up, Aria put on a burst of speed, but with Ezra's quick pace, and her shorter stride, it was several minutes before she was able to catch up to him. Reaching out, she finally grabbed his hand, forcing him to stop.

At the sudden feel of her cool, slick touch, Ezra jerked his hand away as if it had been scorched. He snapped around to look at her, his hair matted down and dripping teardrops of rain onto his face. His shoulders were hunched against the chilly air. She focused on his eyes that appeared almost crazed with shock, and guilt. And yes, if she wasn't wrong, desire also burned deep in the azure depths.

"Why are you following me?" he asked her, his voice breaking in torment. "Just let me go," he said dismissively, turning to continue down the road.

"No, I'm not going to just let you go," Aria retorted, tap dancing around to place herself directly in his path. "We need to talk."

"No, what we need is distance. Lots and lots of distance between us." He made a move to walk around her, but again she shifted, creating a human wall in front of him. In frustration, he drew a shaky hand through his wet hair, pushing the dark mahogany mass back from his face. "God, Aria, what do you want from me? Aren't things messed up enough?"

"I told you. I want us to talk. Preferably not out here in the freezing rain, but if that's all I can get, I'll take it." She wrapped her arms around her shoulders, attempting to trap what remained of her body heat, all the time knowing that the gesture was pointless. She was already feeling the chill creep into her bones.

"I need to get to town. Get us some help and get you out of here," he responded, acting as if he hadn't heard or understood what she had just said. There was a hint of desperation in his voice. He knew he could no longer trust himself to be out here in the woods alone with her_. For her own sake, I need to leave. Why can't she understand that?_

"I'm not going to just let you walk away," she said, as if aware of what he was thinking. "If you insist on walking to town when it's about to turn dark, then I'm going with you. And don't think you can stop me," she added, as she saw his mouth open to begin his argument why that wouldn't happen. "It's a free world. I have as much right to walk down this road as you do. So, if I have to walk beside you, behind you, across the road from you to give me an opportunity to talk to you, then I will. But I'd rather do it back at the cabin where it's at least a little warmer, and a whole lot drier than it is out here. So which is it?" She said, staring up at him, her mouth set in a determined line, ignoring the droplets of rain collecting on her thick upper lashes.

Ezra realized that Aria wasn't going to just let him walk off into the proverbial sunset. She wanted to actually discuss what had just happened between the two of them. It didn't escape his notice that she was probably handling this situation a lot more maturely than he was. He was the one trying to run away.

Staring into her determined eyes, he clinched his jaw as he contemplated what to do. He had no doubt that it wouldn't take much for him to get past her, her frame so petite and slender. And yet, he also knew, that she meant what she said. She would pursue him for as long as it took until he agreed to talk about that damn kiss. The feel of her body against his, the taste of her kisses, still burned in his memory. Could he sit and have a conversation with her when all he wanted to do was sweep her back into his arms and finish what they had started? And yet, maybe that's just what they needed. Based on what had just happened, maybe they did need to have a completely open and honest conversation about where things stood and how they each felt about this situation. Let the chips fall where they may.

With a slight nod, Ezra turned around and started slowly trudging back toward the cabin. His feet felt heavy and leaden as they traveled across the leaf-strewn lane, a juxtaposition to his hurried flight in the opposite direction. He noticed that Aria remained behind him, walking at a slight distance, as if afraid at any moment that he was going to turn around and attempt to flee. Who could blame her? He'd already tried it once. Was she purposely holding back in case she needed to block his get away?

All too soon for his taste, he found himself at the open door to the cabin. He noticed that the floor around the door was wet from the wind-swept rain that had snuck in while they were both gone. A small puddle was slowly inching its way from the threshold of the door into the room.

Without turning around, Ezra immediately walked over to the fireplace and started stuffing newspaper and kindling onto the grate. He knew this could wait, but he felt the impulsive need to do something, anything, before having to confront what had happened between the two of them. A pain shot through his gut at the idea of having to turn and look into her soulful eyes; eyes that would probably be filled with hurt and confusion over what he had done. Striking a match, the flame's flickering light reflected in Ezra's gaze. He watched, mesmerized for several seconds before finally igniting the sheets of paper underneath the wood.

When the small pieces of kindling started to catch, he carefully placed some of the larger, dry pieces of wood on top, watching as the fire started to build in strength. Knowing the time had finally come, a deep sigh escaped his lips, his back shivering from a sudden chill, and he turned slowly to face Aria.

She stood near the couch, staring at him, a small stream of water trickling down her arms, dripping off her fingertips, and soaking into the threadbare rug at her feet. Wiping the residual rain from her face, she smiled weakly at him. Her eyes that he had been so afraid would hold nothing but pain and hurt, radiated only softness and encouragement. He stood and walked over to the couch, sitting down heavily on the worn leather cushion.

Now that she actually had him back in here, her stomach was flip flopping with nervous butterflies. She knew he was poised to reject her yet again, and if she had to hear him say "I'm sorry" once more, she thought she'd lose it. Hearing a guy apologize for kissing you was humiliating; like she wasn't worthy of being kissed; that it only happened by accident instead of desire.

Her eyes were fixated on his lips, those soft sensual lips that had been pressed against hers just a few minutes before. Almost as if she could see inside his mind, and knew what he was thinking, she watched as his lips parted and he gazed up at her, his eyes immediately locking onto her.

Before he could utter a word, Aria's hand shot up in a quick halting motion. "No," she said more sternly than she meant to sound. "No," she repeated, softening her tone as she walked over to stand in front of him. "You got to speak first this morning. Now it's my turn. I know what you're about to do. Once again you're about to pour out a heart-felt apology for what happened earlier. I didn't mean it; it was an accident; the alcohol clouded my judgment," she mimicked his tone as she listed off his possible excuses.

Ezra started to interject, but Aria rushed on. "That's bullshit!"

Her words hit him like a slap in the face. His eyes opened wide at her impassioned and angry rebuttal. "Let's be real here," she continued, "we've been dancing around this thing all day. You're obviously attracted to me, and for some reason, you keep beating yourself up about it. I'm telling you, it's okay. I don't know how else to put it. It's not like I was trying to push you off me earlier. I wanted you just as much as you wanted me. Did you not pick up on the subtle hint of my legs wrapped around your waist?" she asked sarcastically. "So you need to get over the pity party you're throwing yourself about your job, and what if the principal finds out, because I keep telling you that's a non issue. Let's get past all that shit, and discuss this thing that's building between us like two adults."

Having said her spill, Aria stood there, staring down at him, holding her breath as she waited for his response.

"You know," he began slowly, "you really shouldn't swear."

Her unblinking stare bore into him. Her entire body went rigid and still as her mind slowly coiled around his response. With a slight shrug of her shoulders, her lips slowly curled into a smile. A small chuckle escaped her mouth and quickly escalated into a full blown laugh. Throwing her head back she let the sound come rolling out of her. All the tension that had been building in her body was released with this single action. As the laughter slowly died down, she shook her head helplessly as she threw up her arms in exasperation and walked away, pacing back in forth in front of him.

"You're unbelievable, you know that," she replied, one last bitter laugh escaping her lips. "You obviously think I'm someone that I'm not. That's probably part of our problem. First you were worried about my drinking. Sorry to have burst that bubble, but me and alcohol have been well acquainted with each other the past few years. As for swearing, hell, I do it all the damn time," she said smirking at him as she pointedly interjected a few choice words. "And then there's my virtue," Aria said, making quotation marks in the air as she suddenly turned to face him, her back to the warm fire. "You act as if I'm poison, that one touch from my body will make you sick, and yet, even now, I feel your eyes on me. Why can't you just say what you want?"

Not realizing that his gaze had fallen from her face to her chest that was all but exposed to him yet again with that damn white T-shirt plastered to her body, his eyes snapped back up to her, a guilty red tint brushing his cheeks.

Looking at him in irritation, Aria rashly reached down and drew her shirt over her head, throwing the lump of wet fabric across the room in the far corner. "Is this better? Is this what you want?" She was angry and frustrated, and yet her words seemed to come out breathy and soft, her own yearning and ache clear in her question. She watched as his gaze hungrily feasted on her flesh, his hands itching to reach out and caress her skin that shimmered like liquid gold with the fire flames reflecting off the water droplets clinging to her body. Taking a step closer to him, she stood before him, their knees barely touching. She looked down at him, her eyes begging for him to say something, to _do_ something.

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Ezra stood, their bodies softly touching. The air seemed charged with electricity as he felt the friction between them as their chests brushed against each other. Reaching over to the side of the couch, he grabbed the discarded blanket from the night before and draped it over her shoulders. Her eyes grew teary from his apparent rejection, as her shoulders slumped in resignation. She had done and said all she could. Obviously it hadn't been enough.

As she shifted to move away from him, she was startled to feel the arms that had draped the blanket over her back continue to wrap around her, pulling her tighter against him in a soft and silent embrace. With his strong arms securely around her back, their bodies pressed together, Aria's arms tentatively raised and inched around his waist. They stood that way for several minutes, locked together, neither of them speaking. The only sound in the room was the relentless, steady beat of the rain as it pelted the tin roof above them. She lowered her head to rest against his chest, oblivious to the cold, wet cloth pressed to her cheek. All she could feel was the solid strength of his back under her fingers. All she could hear was the steady drumbeat of his heart as it pulsed beneath her ear.

She wasn't sure how much time passed before Ezra finally released her, pulling back slightly as he gazed down at her, reaching out and tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. "I hate that I've made you doubt yourself," he said sadly. Motioning for her to sit on the couch, he joined her, their legs lightly touching. Grasping one of her hands in his, he looked down at their joined hands as his thumb caressed her soft palm. Deliberately, his gaze raised and raked over her face before settling on her luminous, hazel eyes. "I'm done putting up any defenses. I've already broken about every rule there is between a teacher and his student. I might as well lay it all out."

Aria's heart beat erratically within her chest. She held her breath, as her eyes glistened with excitement. Were they finally going to get to the truth? After all the side glances and stolen kisses, it was about time. Biting her lower lip, a tell-tale sign of her nerves, she waited for him to continue.

"I don't deny that I find you very attractive. I mean, what guy wouldn't? You're gorgeous, funny, smart, not to mention, sexy as hell... the whole package rolled into one."

A becoming shade of pink crept up Aria's cheeks as she blushed from his compliments. "Under any other circumstances I wouldn't be holding back. But there's no denying the fact that you're my student. We can't just ignore that, no matter how much either of us might want to. And there are certain things that are right, and there are certain things that go way beyond wrong," he said quietly, willing her to understand.

"We're not that far apart in age, you know," Aria countered. "What's six or seven years? If I had met you under any other circumstances, our age wouldn't matter."

"Oh?" he questioned, his eyes rising in surprise. "So your parents wouldn't have any problem with you dating a guy in his mid twenties?"

"Well, they might be a little shocked at first," she reluctantly admitted, "but once they got to know you and saw how sweet, kind, and smart you were, I know they would come around. In a couple of months I turn eighteen and they wouldn't have a say so anyways."

As Aria studied him, she could see the internal struggle that he was going through. She desperately wanted to reach out, caress his cheek and tell him that everything would be okay. She hated to see him looking so lost. And yet, she somehow knew that this was the moment of truth. She either had to convince him that the two of them could make a go of this, whatever _this_ was, or she felt that he'd completely shut himself off from her.

She settled with placing her other hand on top of his, stroking his long delicate fingers as her gaze held him captive. "Ezra, it's like you said before. We've already crossed a line. What's done is done. You need to look at this situation in an entirely different way. Instead of thinking of yourself as the teacher and me the student, why can't you just see yourself as a boy and me a girl, both of whom desire each other. We're alone in the woods for a lost weekend, a weekend that no one else need ever know about... a stolen time that exists only between us?"

The liquid blue pools of his eyes held her gaze as her words rolled over him as soft and warm as the sweet breath that uttered them. A comfortable silence settled between them as they sat on that worn leather couch, clasping each other's hands, as Ezra battled with his soul. Transfixed by her mesmerizing plea, Ezra nodded almost imperceptibly before speaking. "I... I want to ..." he stopped himself before giving voice to his desire. Instead, with his free hand, he reached up and gently held Aria's chin, tilting her head up slightly as his lips slowly descended to hers.

Aria's breath hitched in her throat with the first feather soft contact of his lips against hers. The touch was so light it was almost a whisper, and yet her whole body tingled as even the fine, small hairs on the back of her neck quivered in reaction. She wanted so badly to reach up and wrap her arms around his neck, pulling him tightly against her, and yet, fear that he might get spooked if she moved too fast, kept her arms immobile.

For several minutes his lips danced across hers, teasing and tasting, until finally, Aria felt the soft thrust of his tongue as it glided across her mouth, pressing against her lips before sliding inside as she willingly opened herself to him. When she met his tongue with her own, stroking and twisting together, she heard the soft moan that escaped from deep within his throat. The fingers that held her chin tightened as he increased the pressure of his lips against hers.

What had started as a sweet kiss of exploration and wonderment, had deepened to one of heated passion and an intense hunger that was now being fed. And yet still, Aria kept her hands clasped against his, firmly in her lap. Afraid of making the wrong move, of going too fast, she allowed her mouth and the kiss to portray for her the deep level of her desire and what she wanted to happen between the two of them.

Ezra's mouth released her lips and trailed a pattern of soft kisses across her cheek up to her ear. His teeth bit playfully down on her earlobe. A breathy gasp escaped Aria's parted lips as her body reacted to his gentle touch. She wondered how it was possible that each touch could feel better than the last?

A low rumble of laughter from Ezra tickled Aria's ear as his mouth kissed the lobe one more time before nuzzling her softly with his nose. Resting his forehead against her head, inhaling deeply the sweet smell of her hair, he sighed. "God, Aria, your kisses are like a drug. I can't seem to get enough of you."

Pleased beyond words, Aria finally felt brave enough to reach up and clasp his head between her small, delicate hands, looking him straight in his brilliant blue eyes. Stroking his cheeks with her thumbs, she licked her full lips, still tasting him on her tongue. "Then don't stop," she whispered as she raised her mouth to his.

Feeling his strong arms encircle her waist, Aria's fingers crept up to his broad shoulders as she crushed her lips to his. The blanket, that had earlier cocooned her shoulders, fell unheeded to the couch. No longer fighting the attraction the two felt for each other, their bodies pressed together, locked in a tight embrace as their hands grew bolder.


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks for the previous reviews. It always helps to get some feedback as to what you guys are thinking and enjoying about the story. Sorry it's been a while since my last update. Life sometimes gets in the way. Anyways, to make up for the delay, this is a longer chapter. I think there are a couple of things in here you guys will like! Let me know what you think.**

Ezra's arms encircled Aria's waist pulling her tightly against him. The wet chill from his T-shirt cooled her heated skin, and her hands slid down his muscular back to the edge of the offending garment. Tugging impatiently on the shirt, she wanted it off him, desperate to feel his skin against her own. He broke free from the kiss long enough to rip it over his head and toss it carelessly to the floor.

Their bodies were locked together. Aria's hands dancing up and down his broad back, feeling his muscles ripple beneath her painted fingertips. Her breasts were crushed against his chest, and still she felt as if she couldn't get close enough. His kisses seared her skin as his lips traveled down her cheeks to the soft skin at the nape of her neck. His tongue darted out to taste the sweet, salty texture of her skin before his lips descended, branding her forever with his scent and the feel of his body entwined with hers.

Without even realizing how it happened, Aria found herself in his lap, legs wrapped around his waist, her body unconsciously grinding against his pelvis. His fingers caressed her bare back, a crackling path of electricity surging between them as his hands wandered closer toward her luscious hair. Quickly removing the clip, the chestnut locks fell free, the tresses cascading around her shoulders, clinging to her cheeks as the drying tendrils fluttered in the slight breeze from Ezra's quick breaths.

His hands dug deep into the thick mass of hair, feeling the silken strands twine around his fingers as he crushed her harder against his lips. He had kissed many girls in his life, but he was shocked at the guttural reaction he was having to Aria. He couldn't seem to get enough. When their lips had first touched, it was as if a powerful magnet had sealed them together. The more he kissed her, the more he touched her, the more he wanted. He was almost afraid at the intensity of the feelings burning through him.

Aria's mouth was locked tightly onto Ezra's, her tongue thrust aggressively in his mouth. She rose slightly on her knees, positioning herself so she was pressed tighter against him, her body angled above his, so that her head tilted down as if she was the dominant one. And yet, her entire body seemed to quiver inside, drowning in the waves of passion and desire she felt consuming her.

Ezra's long, tapered fingers released Aria's hair, brushing against her neck before settling on her shoulders. As his mouth continued to rain kisses onto Aria's plump lips, his thumbs hooked under the straps of her white lacy bra, dragging them from her shoulders. With her shoulders now bare, Ezra's mouth trailed kisses from her cheeks, down her neck, to her finely-boned shoulders. His tongue darted out, caressing her collar bone, sucking lightly on the hollow point just below her neck. Aria's breath caught in her throat as her fingers clawed against his back, reflexively curling into fists as a myriad of sensations rippled through her body.

She yearned for his touch to continue, for his lips to travel farther. She wanted to feel his mouth against her breast, his hands all over her bare skin. She wanted to hold nothing back from this man. His kisses felt almost bruising against her skin as he held her tightly against him, his lips traveling from her shoulders down to the exposed swell of her breasts.

His hands, that were splayed against the small of her back danced upward, grazing against the clasp of her bra. She sensed rather than felt him hesitate for a second, almost as if he was once again waging war within himself on what to do. But the pause was so brief she wasn't sure if she had imagined it or not. With his arms encircled around her, his fingers curled around the delicate fabric, preparing to release the clasp. She wanted nothing more than to be rid of the thing, to feel him flesh on flesh, nothing in their way.

And then, a low rumble, almost a groan, seemed to fill the air around them. Aria's eyes snapped open, and Ezra's hands stilled in their task. They sat that way for several seconds, locked in each other's embrace, shallow quick breaths, as their gazes held each other. And then the sound repeated, growing in intensity and insistence. Aria blinked several times, unsure what to say or do. _Can I just ignore it?_

Staring at Ezra, she watched as his mouth slowly curled into a smile, exposing his straight, white teeth as a chuckle escaped from his lips. His fingers slowly released her bra, and reaching up he caressed her cheek. "Hungry, are we?" he asked jokingly.

Her eyes open wide, she stared back at him, horrified. "Ezra, I'm so sorry." Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. How in the world could her stomach choose now to growl? Surely food could wait. She had more important things in mind. She attempted to lower her lips back to his, hoping both of them could just ignore the insistent rumbles of her stomach, and yet, he apparently wasn't having any of it. His hands curled around her hips, and he forcefully pulled her off his lap, setting her down gently beside him.

"We need to get you some food. We were about to eat before... well, before all this happened. You've hardly had anything all day. You're body is trying to tell you something."

"I'm listening to other parts of my body right now," Aria mumbled, unwilling to let go of what they had just shared.

Laughing, Ezra reached over and swept a lock of her hair behind her ear, allowing the tendril to curl around his finger. He caressed the silken curl between his thumb and forefinger as he responded. "Stomach first. We can see about satisfying other body parts later." His voice turned deep and gruff as her eyes locked onto his, the need she felt burning intensely in her gaze.

Clearing his throat, he dropped the wayward lock of hair, his eyes never leaving her face. Her look was so carnal and sensual, that it took all his willpower not to grab her and throw her back on top of him. "Just give me a second to recover, and then I'll go get us something to eat."

Her brow rose in confusion, until understanding finally dawned. Her eyes dropped to his lap and the noticeable bulge pressed against his jeans. "Oh," a small sound escaped Aria's cherub lips, as the familiar twitter in her stomach immediately responded to his obvious arousal. Licking her lips, she lifted her eyes back to his face, glancing at him through her thick, long lashes.

"You can't be too surprised, Aria. You're a beautiful girl, and I'm obviously very attracted to you. But, don't say anything more," he said, holding a finger to her lips when it became apparent she was about to speak, "or I'll never be able to get off this couch."

After several minutes, and with images of long dead writers scrolling through his mind to help douse his arousal, Ezra was finally able to make his way into the kitchen and proceed to heat the pot of water for their dinner.

Aria stayed on the couch, curling her legs under her, as she contentedly sat, watching Ezra as he moved confidently through the kitchen, placing bowls and mugs on the table as the whistling kettle announced the water was finally hot.

"I think we're ready," Ezra announced, pouring the steaming coffee into the cups. As he retrieved the noodles from the stove, he stopped in mid stride as he watched Aria stand and start heading toward the kitchen.

"You're not coming like that, are you?" he asked, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

"Why not?" she stopped in her tracks, clearly confused at his question.

"Um... because you're only partially dressed," he answered, his eyes slowly sweeping from her bare toes up past her hips to the small, wispy bit of semi-transparent fabric that barely covered her breasts.

"So are you," she countered, eyeing his broad bare chest appreciatively.

"Not the same thing, and you know it," he answered, his blue eyes darkening with desire as his grip on the pan tightened.

"You're right," she quipped. "Technically, I'm more dressed than you are. So," she said reaching behind her back, "if you want to level the playing field..."she gripped the edge of the bra, preparing to unclasp it.

"Don't do it, Aria," Ezra warned, his tone clearly voicing the tenuous control he had over his emotions at the moment.

Her wide eyes swept over his face, noticing the clenched muscles of his jaw, and how rigidly he was standing. Taking pity on him, and knowing that he was trying to exhibit some level of self control, she slowly lowered her hands to her sides.

With a deep sigh of relief, he continued walking toward the table, pouring half of the contents of the pot into each of their bowls. "I know your shirt is soaked, but would you please at least wrap the blanket around your shoulders while we eat?" Setting the pot down, he looked over at her, his blue eyes pleading for her to understand. "I'm trying to do the right thing here."

Without responding, Aria reached around and grabbed the blanket off the floor where it had fallen in the midst of their tryst, and she wrapped it around her, smiling up at him as she walked to the kitchen, sitting down in the nearest chair.

The scent of the cooked meal, rose up on a whiff of steam, and Aria's stomach once again growled in response. They both laughed good naturedly, each relieved for something to cut the sexual tension that seemed to always hang between them.

Realizing that once again they were without utensils, Aria delicately picked up several of the warm noodles, threw her head back, and opened her mouth like a baby bird, allowing the food to fall on her tongue before she eagerly swallowed. She had never been a big fan of Raman Noodles, but not having eaten much in the last 24 hours, they tasted like the best meal she had ever had. She reached out and grabbed one of the peanut butter crackers and nibbled on it before dunking it into the broth.

Their companionable silence was broken after several minutes when the first pangs of hunger had been sated. "You know," Ezra said, "it's probably a good thing that your stomach growled when it did."

"What do you mean?" Aria asked. _Had he been that eager to get away from me? Did he need an excuse to push me away? _It didn't seem like it at the time. She could remember feeling his erection pressing against her. A slight tingle stirred low in her belly as she visualized herself straddling him, grinding against his body.

"We're both adults here, Aria," Ezra continued. "Well, almost at least," he added under his breath.

Aria's lips pursed together at the not-so-subtle reminder that she was still a few months shy of her eighteenth birthday. _Is he still hung up on my age?_

"I think we both know where things were headed between us on that couch," he said, glancing past her, frowning slightly as if the sofa was to blame for what had transpired.

"And your point is," she finally prompted, as he continued to stare at the offending piece of furniture.

Tearing his gaze away and leveling is back on her, he continued, "and my point is, that I didn't set out for this to happen."

Sighing in frustration, Aria wiped her lips on the paper towel before shaking her head from side to side. "Do we have to go through this all again? I know you didn't set out for this to happen. Neither did I. But that doesn't mean that things can't just... progress... naturally." She shrugged her shoulders, her long lashes sweeping across her cheeks as she gazed up at him, smiling in what she hoped was a seductive manner.

"That's what I'm talking about. We can't allow things to progress 'naturally'. And I'm not even talking about the age difference or the teacher/student thing. It's much more basic than that."

Wrinkling her brow, she bit her bottom lip, attempting to understand what he was saying. "More basic?"

Ezra's eyes were riveted on Aria's lips. The sudden desire to reach out and grasp that sweet bottom lip between his own teeth nearly knocked him out of his seat. Running a shaky hand through his hair in frustration, his eyes locked back onto her confused gaze.

"I mean, I thought I was coming out here to find some peace and quiet and get some writing done. I wasn't expecting a weekend hook up."

"Well, I wasn't either," Aria replied indignantly. "I was coming out here to read, take some pictures, just get away from life for a while."

"Okay then, you understand our dilemma."

"Um, no, clearly I don't. Just because we didn't plan it, doesn't mean we can't take advantage of it," Aria said, her voice rising slightly as panic began to fill her body. _Is he about to reject me? When we were so close?_

"The planning is important, Aria," Ezra stressed, unable to understand why she was getting upset. "I didn't exactly have condoms on my packing list you know."

Realization washed over Aria as it dawned on her what he had been trying to say. It wasn't that it didn't _want _to be with her, he just didn't feel like he had come prepared to. Smiling brightly in relief, Aria reached out, placing her hand lightly on top of his where it rested on the table. "It's okay, Ezra," she reassured him.

Shaking his head in disbelief, his eyes darted quickly down to her plump lips before shooting guiltily back to her eyes. "No it's not. I'm not about to do that to you, Aria. There's no way I'm going to allow us to take that risk. Unprotected sex is not something I'm willing to play around with."

"That's what I'm trying to tell you. It's okay," she told him again. "You might not have condoms with you, but I'm on the pill. We're covered," she finished, her thumb rubbing lightly across the top of his hand.

"You're on the pill?" he repeated slowly, a lump forming deep in his stomach at the idea that she would need to already be taking it. _Is she seeing someone? _Ezra racked his brain attempting to remember if he had seen her lately in the hallways of the school with any particular guy. And yet, every time he had seen her, she had been surrounded by her group of girl friends. Of course, that didn't necessarily mean anything. Maybe she was dating someone older, or someone who didn't go to Rosewood High. The image of her having sex with some faceless guy flashed through his mind, as a sharp pain ripped through his gut.

"Yeah," she nodded, smiling, completely unaware of the torrent of feelings waging war within Ezra. "I've been on it for about a year."

A sharp pain developed behind Ezra's eyes, his breath hitched in his throat as her words rocketed through his body. _A year? Who the hell was this guy?_ The hand that lay beneath Aria's slowly curled into a fist, his short nails biting into his palm as he attempted to calm this sudden irrational feeling that was boiling within him. He had no right to be jealous or upset. _This weekend doesn't mean anything, right?_

"My doctor put me on it for medical reasons." She laughed lightly, leaning back in the chair as the blanket slipped off one of her shoulders.

_Medical reasons? Thank God! _Ezra could feel his body releasing the tension that had been building between his shoulder blades. "Medical reasons, huh?" Ezra nibbled on his cracker, attempting to appear nonchalant as he asked his next question. "So, does that mean you've never..."

Aria's eyes snapped back up to his, her heart beating rapidly within her chest. _What do I say? What's the right answer? If I say I've never had sex, then he might argue that he doesn't want to be the one to take my virginity. He might consider that too big of a deal. But if I do admit that I've had sex, will he think I'm a slut? _Weighing her options in the matter of seconds, Aria finally decided on the truth. She had already told enough lies in her life. She knew only too well where that had gotten her.

"I've had sex before, but only once, earlier this year." Her mind flashed back to that night with Noel. She, Hannah, Emily, and Spencer had talked about sex so often in the past year that it had been built up in her mind as some monumental event. And yet, when it had happened, up at Noel's cabin after his Halloween party, it had been a disappointment. A sharp pain when it began and a couple of quick thrusts and he had been through. He had rolled off her, zipped up his pants, and left her there in the spare bedroom, dazed and confused as to what had happened. That had pretty much sealed the end of their relationship. They went out a couple of times after that, but nothing was ever the same between them.

Shaking the thought from her mind, Aria smiled at Ezra, waiting for his response. "Oh, so are you... currently seeing someone?" he attempted to casually ask.

Her lips curled up in a larger smile, not buying the indifference he was attempting to show. "No, I'm not seeing anyone."

Instead of responding, Ezra's blue eyes flashed momentarily up to her steady gaze. Disquieted by the intensity of her stare, he quickly looked down at his bowl, swirling the last of the contents with his cracker before popping in into his mouth.

Despite the intimate conversation at dinner, the meal had been easy. With both of them busy eating, and their hands occupied with bowls and coffee mugs, he hadn't had to be concerned with things escalating and turning physical between the two of them. But now that the meal was over and all remnants washed away, there wasn't much left to do but return to the den and the cozy fire that was crackling away in the fireplace. He added another couple of logs to keep the room warm and then turned around.

Aria was nestled on one side of the couch, and Ezra was left with two options. _Do I join her on the couch, or do I choose the safety of the chair? _Wiping some clinging bits of bark from his hands against his still damp jeans, he sat down on the other end of the couch, the leather crackling under his weight.

Misinterpreting his gesture, Aria chuckled lightly as she ran her hand against her own wet denim. "It takes a long time for this stuff to dry out, doesn't it?"

"Yeah. It's not the most waterproof fabric made, is it?"

"I wish I had something I could change into. I'm tired of feeling wet and clammy."

"It's a shame your bag got stolen. If I had know I would be having to dress for two, I would have brought more stuff with me. Guys don't need a lot you know. A couple of pairs of pants and shirts, and we're good to go."

"Yeah, I get it. No reason for both of us to be miserable though. You could always change into your other pair of jeans."

Ezra's gaze swiveled over to his duffel bag, thinking wistfully of the dry clothes within. "That hardly seems fair," he answered, looking back at her.

"No, please, go ahead. Anyways," she said, rising and walking over to the fireplace, "that shirt I wore last night is probably dry by now. It's been out by the fire for a couple of hours."

"I have to admit, the idea of completely drying out sounds good. Of course, it's my fault that we've been going around here wet and uncomfortable for the last few hours. I should never have bolted out of the cabin like that."

"I wouldn't say it's been completely uncomfortable. I found part of the time to be pretty nice," Aria said, smile suggestively over at him.

The memory of her wrapped around his waist came crashing back into his mind with a sudden unexpected force. Exhaling a rush of air, Ezra stood up and walked back to the fire, grabbing his shirt. Tossing it at her, he went and retrieved his bag before disappearing into the bedroom to change. Aria's lilting laugh trailed after him as he attempted to escape the constant arousal he felt just being around her.

The next couple of hours passed pleasantly enough. The cabin was comfortably warm from the fire that Ezra kept stocked with wood. They had found an old deck of worn cards in the drawer of the side table in the den and had been playing gin rummy while sipping companionably from the bottle of scotch that was perched between them on the coffee table.

Aria picked up the card Ezra had laid down and switched it with one in her hand. "Gin," she announced smugly, laying down her cards for him to see.

"Again?" he groaned good naturedly. "Why are you so good at this game? I swear I think you're cheating. No one should win 10 out of 12 games."

"Maybe it's not a matter of me being that good," Aria said as she gathered all the cards together. "Maybe you're just that bad."

"Thanks," he replied sarcastically. "I think it's more of a matter of bad luck."

"Well, you know what they say...If you're unlucky in cards..." Aria's hands stilled as she lifted her eyes to his, the rest of the saying left hanging in the air between them.

_You're lucky in love, _he mentally finished. "Yeah, well, I think I've had enough card playing for one day." He stretched his arms out, relieving some of the aches from sitting in one position for so long.

Placing the cards on the side table, Aria turned back to him. "It's been a long day. I'm starting to get tired anyways."

This was the moment that Ezra had been dreading and yearning for ever since he had kissed Aria earlier in the day. Given what had transpired between them, the situation tonight was totally different than it had been last night. What did she expect? Should he offer to sleep in the chilly bedroom? Maybe she could curl up on the couch and he could take the floor.

Without another word, Aria stood with the blanket still wrapped around her and disappeared into the bedroom. _Maybe she's going to sleep in the bedroom_ he thought. And yet, a minute later, she reappeared with the pillows secured under one of her arms. She tossed them onto the rug in front of the fireplace and then glanced over at him. "This doesn't have to be weird or awkward, Ezra. It wasn't last night."

"Speak for yourself," he mumbled, thinking back to how it had felt to have her pressed against his body.

Smirking at him, her brow lifted as she unwrapped herself from the blanket. Immediately his eyes dropped to her exposed slim legs that disappeared at the hem of his T-shirt. Aria's lips parted and her breath hitched as she watched his eyes travel leisurely over her body. She felt herself twitch in response as she recognized the blaze of desire that had flashed through his eyes before he had been able to conceal it.

Aria slowly lowered herself to the floor, pulling one end of the blanket over her. Turning on her side, she faced the fireplace. She held her breath, her eyes opened wide, as she waited for Ezra to make a decision as to what he was going to do. She knew that if he decided to sleep beside her, it would mean he had come to terms with the idea that something might happen between them.

Time stretched before Ezra as he gazed down at Aria, her long mane of chestnut locks splayed out across the pillow. He could see the soft rise and fall of her shoulder with each breath she took. Stifling any last whispers of doubt, Ezra stood and slowly unzipped and removed his jeans. Last night he had slept in his boxers because he had thought he would be sleeping alone. Tonight he was making the conscious decision to sleep only in his boxers because he was _not _sleeping alone. While it might appear to be a singular decision, Ezra knew that with that one action, he was making choices that would affect the rest of the night.

Aria felt the cool air hit her legs as he lifted the blanket and slipped in quietly behind her. Immediately she could feel the heat radiating off his skin even though he refrained from touching her. They lay like that for several minutes, both of them wide eyed, acutely conscious of the other so nearby, the idea of sleep far from their minds.

Slowly, Aria rolled over until she was facing Ezra. Their faces were just inches apart. She bit her lower lip as she gazed into his translucent eyes, the flames of the fire reflecting in their depths. She felt like she had been the one initiating everything between them this weekend, having to coax him and convince him that they could be together. Not this time. This time _he _was going to have to be the one to make a move. If anything was going to happen between them it would be because he wanted it enough to do something about it.

Her gaze traveled from his eyes to his chiseled cheekbones, down to his lips. Though the speech had sounded great in her head, she hoped he would do something soon. Otherwise, she wasn't sure how long she could hold out; she might just pounce on him.

Staring over at Aria, seeing her shimmering eyes lingering on his lips, Ezra felt his last resolve slipping away. His hand reached up, sweeping a strand of wayward hair out of her face. The silken texture of the lock poured over his hand, wrapping and curling around each finger. He stroked her cheek with the back of his hand before cupping her neck and pulling her gently toward him. Ever so softly his lips descended onto hers, the touch tentative and light. Several times her kissed her just like this, slowly, softy, in no apparent hurry for anything more.

He was acutely aware of the fact that as they continued to kiss Aria had moved her body closer to his, her chest now pressed firmly against his. And yet still he continued with the soft kisses. He wanted to make sure that he gave her every opportunity to pull away, to stop things before they progressed too far.

With a start, he felt an unexpected nip as Aria suddenly bit down lightly on his lower lip. His eyes shot open in surprise, and a bubble of laughter surged upward through him at her brazenness. Obviously she was letting him know that she was wanting more than these tame, almost chaste kisses.

In response to her unspoken demand, his tongue darted out caressing her full lower lip before easing between her eagerly parting lips. His tongue encountered hers and they twined together, stroking and teasing each other as their lips sealed tightly together. As the kiss deepened, Ezra felt Aria's hand shimmy up his broad arms and into his wavy locks. She curled her fingers around his hair and pressed her body even tighter against his, her hips grinding against him.

Immediately Ezra felt his body respond. The thin fabric of his boxers did little to disguise the growing erection that was pressed aggressively against her bare thigh. His hand shifted down to her bare leg, caressing the smooth skin as he eased upward, flitting over the edge of her panties and continuing past her slim hip bone until his hand rested just beneath her breast. He could actually feel the slight weight against the back of his fingers as his hand stilled.

His electric blue eyes opened. All his senses were on fire, a current of electricity seeming to surge between the two of them. Aria's passion-drunk eyes swept open to find him watching her; the hunger in his gaze nearly stole her breath. With his voice thick with emotion, he spoke. "This is it Aria. Are you sure that _this_ is what you want? That _we _are what you want?"

With her ability to speak apparently stolen from her, all Aria could do was nod as her body urged him to continue touching her. The feel of his hand resting on her stomach, brushing lightly against the underside of her breast, was driving her mad. She pulled his face back down to hers and kissed him passionately, her tongue diving deep inside his mouth.

With their lips locked together, the back of Ezra's hand stroked against Aria's breast, his thumb grazing against her nipple. A soft moan vibrated deep within Aria as she inadvertently arched her body upward, eager for more. His hand slowly encased her breast, stroking her soft flesh as her nipple raised and pressed against the palm of his hand. He gathered the sensitive bud and rotated it between his fingers, pinching slightly as it continued to pucker and swell in response to his touch.

Her body was screaming for more, tingling from head to toe as emotions crashed through her. She had never had this reaction when Noel had touched her. It was as if she couldn't get enough. Tearing her lips from his, she sat up abruptly, grabbing the edges of her T-shirt and lifting it over her head. She tossed it recklessly to the side and stared down at Ezra. His appreciative gaze raked over her exposed flesh, turned amber by the flickering light of the nearby fire.

With their hungry gazes locked onto each other, Aria swung one of her legs over him, straddling his hips, feeling his erection pressed firmly against her. The only thing separating them now were his boxers and the thin wisp of her silken panties. Ezra reached up and curled his hands around her firm breasts, enjoying the weight of them resting in the palms of his hands. With her fingernails grazing down his chest, she marveled at the feel of his muscles rippling beneath her fingertips. Her fingers stilled at the waistline of his shorts, her hips unconsciously shifting against him. The feel of him beneath her caused a flood of wetness between her legs that quickly soaked her panties. _Does he know what he's doing to me_? she wondered madly as the sexual tension nearly tore her body in half.

And then, as if in response to her unspoken question, Ezra's hands dropped to her hips, and gripping tightly he flipped them over until Aria was pinned beneath him, her legs still wrapped around his waist. Kissing her deeply, he nipped at her full bottom lip as his hips rocked against her, pressing against her wet core as she whimpered beneath him, nearly blind with her need for more. She _had _to have him in her.

His lips trailed kisses down her cheeks to her neck, his tongue darting out to lick her skin, salty with a light sheen of sweat as she threw her head to the side exposing her neck to his hungry lips. A soft mewling sound whispered from her mouth as her nails dug into his back, scratching channels across his shoulder blades. Lowering his mouth to her breasts, his tongue flickered out, lightly caressing the tip of her nipple before drawing the swollen bud into his mouth. Her body arched upward at the sudden onslaught of sensations that ripped through her body.

His hands kneaded and caressed her flesh as his mouth worked from one breast to the other as Aria writhed beneath him. He lowered himself down her body, his mouth tasting the underside of each breast and the firmness of her stomach until he finally encountered the edge of her panties. Planting one final kiss squarely on the small triangular patch of silk, Aria gasped as her eyes flew open, wild with lust.

Ezra's thumbs hooked into the sides of Aria's panties, her skin hot against his fingers. Looking up into her eyes he felt her hips lift slightly off the floor, allowing him to easily slip the small fabric from her body. She finally lay before him completely naked, her body exposed to his rabid gaze. His eyes feasted on her body, the light from the fireplace flickering across her skin, casting shadows in the dips and valleys.

Standing beside her, he slipped off his boxers, very much aware of her eyes raking over his body and resting on his prominent erection. Aria swallowed deeply, her mouth suddenly dry as she saw him standing before her, appearing so strong, so sure. She had no doubt that she wanted this more than anything, but a flicker of fear wedged into her mind as to whether or not she might disappoint him.

Slowly lowering himself once more to the floor, his body covered her as he peppered kisses once more onto her lips. While his need was coiling so tightly in himself that it was almost painful, he consciously controlled his desire as his hands caressed over Aria's soft skin. He knew that she didn't have much experience, and he didn't want to frighten her by going too fast. There were plenty of things he wanted to experience with her, but for this first time together, he thought it best to take things slowly.

He could feel her once again relax beneath him as he continued to kiss her, his hands lightly stroking her breasts. He felt her legs wrap around his body once more as she pressed herself against him. With her lips sealed against his, he trailed his hand down her body, feeling the muscles in her stomach flitter beneath his light touch. Finally, his hand slipped between her legs, his fingers sliding against her wet channel. A guttural moan reverberated deep in his throat as he realized how ready her body was for his.

Removing his fingers, he slowly thrust his hips once, and then waited, giving her a chance to adjust to his size. After the initial shock of feeling him slip inside her, Aria began to press her pelvis against him, letting him know that she was ready and needing more. He began to move slowly and rhythmically as her hands raked down his back, gripping his ass as he began to quicken the pace.

This was unlike anything she had experience with Noel. That had been a quick and amateurish effort on his part. Ezra clearly knew what he was doing. Their bodies moved in perfect rhythm together. The only sound in the room was their combined heavy breathing and the soft moans that escaped through parted lips. As the pace continued to escalate, Aria could feel her body tightening, her muscles clamping down harder against him. Ezra swore softly under his breath at the tight fit, unsure of how much longer he could hold out, but determined that Aria receive as much pleasure as he did.

He continued his rhythmic thrusts until finally he felt her body convulse under his. Her nails dug into his skin as her legs clamped down, holding him firmly against her body. As the waves of her climax rippled through her, he finally allowed himself to experience the release he so desperately needed as he spilled his seed deep inside.

The two of them lay like that for several minutes, each attempting to catch their breath as they clutched desperately at each other. Looking down into her smoky eyes, he kissed her once more before moving one damp tendril of hair off her cheek. Slowly rolling off her body he gathered her into his arms, her body cocooned against his broad chest. Her eyes locked onto the flickering flames of the fire, her mind reeling over what had just happened. Her body had exploded at his touch. She had never felt so alive before. Even now, her skin was still tingling. Her mind kept replaying everything that had happened since yesterday. How could one day have changed her life so completely? How could one weekend rock her world?

With her mind still dancing over the images of the two of them together, her eyes slowly began to droop as she felt the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back, his soft breath stirring the tendrils of her hair against her neck. Her fingers closed over his hand that was wrapped around her waist, holding her securely against his body. A small pleasurable smile spread across her lips as her mind slowly drifted off on a sea of oblivion.


	7. Chapter 7

Aria's eyes fluttered open. She stared up at the timbered ceiling for several seconds, confused at her unfamiliar surroundings. And then, slowly, the memories rolled through her... the rain...the woods...the cabin... and Ezra. Her lips curled into a satisfied smile as she remembered the night before. She couldn't believe that it had finally happened. The whole weekend they had been tap dancing around their attraction for each other; and finally, last night, they had stopped fighting it. She could remember only too well the feel of him on top of her, inside her, as their bodies moved together. She could still hear him whispering her name, his lips soft against her ear, and the spasms that shook her body as she climaxed. This had been such a far cry from her experience with Noel. While she knew that there had to be more to it than that quick, one-night encounter, she never dreamed it could be like _this._

She could feel the heat of Ezra's body still resting at her side. Turning her head slightly, she glanced over at him. The smile on her lips froze, her eyes widening in shock, as she found herself drowning in his deep blue gaze. _How long has he been awake?_ She suddenly became acutely aware of the fact that the blanket under which they slept last night was nestled low along her hips. A slight blush tinted her cheeks at the thought of him staring at her breasts as she slept. It was one thing to be naked in the midst of having sex, but she'd never spent the night in the arms of a naked man, nor woken up beside one the next morning. _How am I suppose to act? _ Part of her wanted to grab the blanket and pull it up and cover herself. But would that seem childish? _Do I just act like it's no big deal, and just lay here naked as if I do this every day?_

All these thoughts ricocheted through Aria's mind, and yet, she was aware that his eyes never seemed to stray from her face. He stared intently back at her, his brow wrinkled slightly as if lost in thought. A hint of a smile finally touched his lips, reaching up and brightening his eyes.

"Morning," he whispered as he reached out with his hand and pulled the blanket up higher on both of them.

Appreciative of the gesture, Aria smiled shyly back. "Morning." She wanted to say so much more, but was unsure of where to begin. _Does he regret last night? Is he sorry it happened? Are we suppose to pretend it didn't happen?_ _Or do I do what I really want to, and lean over and give him a kiss? _She wasn't sure what her next move should be. She was way out of her element with this whole situation. No doubt Alison would know exactly the right thing to say and do, but she was no Alison.

"Did you sleep okay?"

Aria was startled out of her thoughts by Ezra's quiet question.

Nodding her head while biting down uncertainly on her lower lip, she finally answered. "Yeah, I did. Did you?" Her long eyelashes swept upward as her gaze fixed once again on his vivid blue eyes. Part of her felt ridiculous having this conversation. It was like two strangers attempting to find something to say to cover the uncomfortable silence.

"Yeah. Once I got to sleep that is." Aria's eyes widened slightly at the subtle reminder that their antics last night had kept them both awake for quite some time. Again her mind flashed back to the image of last night, how perfectly their bodies seemed to fit together. Her fingers tingled at the memory of his skin against her hands, the muscles in his back rippling as his body moved in rhythm on top of her.

"Look, I..."Aria began.

"We probably..." Ezra blurted.

Both of them spoke at once, and stopped abruptly, staring at each other. Ezra's eyes raked over Aria's face, her full sweet lips, her large, luminous eyes. Her chestnut locks were spread across the pillow framing her face as her lips suddenly cracked into a mischievous smile. Laughing ruefully in response, Ezra gestured toward Aria.

"Sorry. You go first," he offered.

"I was just going to say," Aria started, and paused, her voicing hitching slightly as Ezra reached out and absently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, his thumb stroking against her cheek. A tingle low in her stomach rippled through her at his sudden, unexpected touch. Nervously licking her lips in response to her body's reaction, she continued. "I don't want you to think that I expect anything as a result of last night," she began again, her voice sounding suddenly thick and heavy to her own ears. "This weekend is just a time bubble that we're lost inside of. I know this is all there is to it. We had fun. At least... I had fun," she finished hesitantly, her voice growing soft with sudden doubt.

"Oh, I definitely had fun," Ezra agreed, smiling as his eyes traveled over her face, lingering on her lips as his thumb continued to stroke her cheek. He leaned forward and sealed his lips to hers, his tongue darting out and pressing against her mouth, pleading for permission to enter.

A sudden rumble of desire thundered through Aria at this simple touch. The hum she had felt deep inside her body at the first stroke to her cheek, exploded upon the impact of his lips against hers. Her desire seemed insatiable. Despite what she had just said to him, part of her wondered how in the hell she was going to go back to Rosewood and pretend that none of this had ever happened. Could she really put all this behind her and act like before?

She reached over and draped her arm around his shoulder, pulling her body closer to his. Ezra's hand curled around her back, caressing the smooth skin along her spine, as he deepened the kiss, his tongue plunging into the deep recesses of her mouth. With one smooth motion, Ezra rolled them over so Aria was laying on top of him, her breasts crushed against his chest. She was acutely aware of the growing hardness of his cock pressing against her thigh. She seductively rubbed her body against his, the friction causing a deep growl to erupt from Ezra's throat as his grip on her hips tightened.

Tearing his lips away from hers, his breath feathered against her ear as he whispered, "straddle me, Aria."

Startled at his request, and unsure of what to do, Aria's eyes opened wide as she gazed down into his intense blue, heated stare. "Straddle my hips with your legs," he urged, knowing that this was an entirely new experience for her. "Don't be scared. I'll help you. Trust me." With his hands firmly on each side of her waist, Aria repositioned herself, her thighs clamped on each side of him. Her breath was quickening and her heartbeat sounded like a drum cadence as she realized what they were about to do. _What if I do it wrong? What if he doesn't like it? _

Still whispering encouragingly to her, Ezra's hands pressed against Aria's hips, raising her slightly in the air as she readjusted her body. Ezra felt himself slowly slipping inside her warm, wet core, her muscles clamping down against him. _God, I could so easily lose myself in her! _For several seconds they lay with their bodies joined, neither of them moving, allowing Aria a chance to adjust to the new position and the full feeling of him inside her. And then, with his hands acting as a guide, she started moving hesitantly, until she was able to establish a steady rhythmic motion. Her breath sounded raspy and harsh to her own ears as she grunted, soft sweet moans escaping her lips that excited Ezra even further. The feelings convulsing through Aria threatened to overwhelm her; she was unable to stifle the pleasure that was rippling through her body. This position offered new and different sensations from last night, and a myriad of sexual feelings consumed her.

She was acutely aware of Ezra's hands moving over her body, rubbing her breasts, squeezing her ass, and settling once more at her waist. His hips thrust up to meet hers time after time as they both neared their climax. Finally, she threw her head back, clawing at his chest, her muscles clamping down against him as waves of pleasure racked her body. Looking up at her, seeing her long hair cascading down her arched back, her breasts thrust forward, and eyes squeezed tightly shut, Ezra's body exploded, his grip tightening on her hips as she crashed back against him.

They lay like that for several minutes, her head resting comfortably against his chest, his arms wrapped around her, with his hands slowly caressing the smooth skin of her back. Their deep breaths were the only sounds in the still room. "Wow," Aria finally gasped as she shifted off him and lay once again at his side.

"Wow indeed," Ezra chuckled, shifting to his side to look at her, his hand absently stroking her arm. His body couldn't seem to get enough of the feel of her silken skin.

"That was... intense," she said, her mind and body still reeling over the experience. Ezra smiled over at her, his mind lost in thought.

"Yeah, it was," he finally agreed, his tone a mixture of surprise and confusion. His brow furrowed as he gazed at her. "Sex with you is..." He hesitated as he struggled to find the right words.

"Is what?" Aria finally asked, her voice low as she felt the confidence and satisfaction of their escapades seep away with each moment that he lay there in silence.

Looking at her large eyes that had suddenly turned guarded, he attempted to smile assuredly at her, before rolling onto his back, staring at the ceiling. Sighing to himself, he shook his head slightly before running a frustrated hand over his face. "Nothing. It doesn't matter."

Sitting up abruptly, wrapping the blanket around her chest, Aria's eyes sparked as she stared over at him. "Oh no, you don't get to start a sentence like that and not finish," she countered doggedly. "Sex with me is what?" She stared down at him, her lips pressed into a determined line. Part of her was screaming to not press the issue; she might not like what he had to say. But yet, she was too stubborn to let it go. She knew he had a lot more experience than she did. What if she had disappointed him?

"Aria, really, it doesn't matter," Ezra countered. He tried to dismiss her insistence. He shouldn't have opened his mouth in the first place. That's what he got for speaking before he thought it through. How could he explain to her what he was feeling? Sex with Aria had been unlike anything he had experienced before, and the intensity of his reaction scared the hell out of him.

"You can't just have sex with someone, start to say something about it, and then all of the sudden clam up. That's not fair, Ezra. How do you think that makes me feel?" The hurt in Aria's tone was abundantly obvious to him.

"I was just going to say that it was... nice," he finished lamely.

"Nice." She stared at him, waiting to see if he was going to add anything else to that one, simple word... a word that seemed so inadequate to her. Nice is how you describe your grandmother or a clerk that assisted you in a store. It certainly wasn't the word she would use to describe the mind-blowing sex they had just had. But then again, she thought to herself, maybe that's all it had been to him... nice. She knew he had a lot more experience than she did. Maybe she hadn't been able to live up to his past lovers.

Attempting to hide her hurt expression, Aria averted her gaze and looked around for the T-shirt she had discarded the night before. Grabbing it, she jabbed her arms through the sleeves and shrugged it over her head. She wiggled out from under the blanket and moved toward the kitchen, intent on putting some distance between Ezra and herself. Filling the pot with water, she set it on the stove, grabbing the jar of instant coffee and sprinkling some of the granules in a nearby mug.

She was aware of Ezra moving and glanced over just in time to see him cast the blanket aside before grabbing his underwear and slipping into it. Her eyes raked over his naked form, still reeling over the fact that she had just been with this man. _How do we go back to what we once were_?

Staring down at the water, hearing the bubbles breaking the surface as it began to boil, Aria became aware of Ezra behind her. He grabbed a nearby mug, pouring some of the coffee into the bottom and then walked over to stand beside her.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

Her hazel eyes shifted over to him, locking onto his steady gaze. Nodding her head slightly, her lips curled into a hint of a smile before breaking contact. She grabbed the pot of water and poured it into both of their mugs, the aroma of the coffee swirling up to tickle her nose as she breathed in deeply the familiar and welcoming scent.

They both sat down at the table, facing each other, an awkward silence quickly developing between them.

"The sun's finally out," Ezra benignly remarked.

Aria looked out the window beside them and noticed the soft rays of the sun hitting the damp leaves. The beads of water glistened like jewels as the droplets shifted and fluttered under the slight breeze. _How ironic, _she thought to herself, _that the rain finally lets up after we give in to what we both had wanted. _

_ "_After I finish this, I'm going back up to the road and hike toward town until I can get a signal on my phone."

Aria's eyes shifted from the window back to him.

"We both have to be back in Rosewood tomorrow, so I need to find a tow truck that can help get the car back on the road."

"Okay," Aria said, resting the mug back on the table. "I'll go get dressed." She had known that sooner or later this would all have to end. Her voice sounded flat as she resigned herself to this swift change in events. She started to rise from her seat, when Ezra's voice froze her in her tracks.

"No, I think you need to stay here."

"Why?" Aria was clearly confused at his insistence that he go alone.

"Because..." Ezra paused for a minute, staring down at the table before looking back up at her. "Because, I don't think it's a good idea for anyone to see us together."

A sharp retort of laughter erupted from Aria's lips. "We're out in the middle of nowhere, Ezra," she said, flinging her arms out as she gestured around her. "Who are you expecting to run into that we both know?"

"I just don't think we should take a chance. I didn't expect to run into you, did I? And we both know how that turned out." Shoving his chair back, Ezra stood and walked over to the sink, rinsing his mug before turning around. "It's just not worth the risk. I'll find someone to get the car back on the road, and I'll be back before you know it."

"You don't know that," Aria retorted, still bristling from his last comment. She knew she shouldn't be, but her feelings were hurt that he didn't want to be seen with her, like she was his dirty little secret. Did he regret running into her in that diner? "You might have to walk all the way back into town, and that could take hours."

"You were planning on spending the entire weekend alone in the woods anyways, Aria. I think you can manage a few hours." As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them. Her eyes immediately reflected the hurt she felt at his rebuff. Standing abruptly, she swept past him and into the den. Snatching up her jeans, bra, and panties she disappeared into the bathroom, closing the door softly behind her... her silence speaking volumes.

Leaning back against the heavy wooden door, Aria squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to let the tears that were pooling in her eyes fall to her cheeks. She knew she was acting ridiculous. They had both said over and over that this weekend would be all there was to it, and yet, it seemed to her, he was so willing to let everything come to an end. His actions seemed to be rushing the end to a weekend that would come too soon all on its own without any intervention on his part. Did he really not care at all? He had been so quick to assume that she didn't want him to leave because she was afraid to spend time alone in the woods. That had nothing to do with it. She had simply wanted to spend those hours with him. If this weekend was to be all that they had, then she wanted all she could get from it. What was going to happen once he returned? _If he's successful in getting the car, is he going to want to drive me to my cabin? Is he going to want me to leave? Is this it? Is it over?_

Maybe, she thought frantically to herself, she could explain things to him, get him to understand that she wanted to spend the time with him. What's the worst that could happen? He would either say yes and let her come, or he'd tell her once again why it was a bad idea. She really had nothing to lose by trying. Sucking in a deep breath, Aria made up her mind. She'd face this situation like an adult, and she'd talk it out with him.

Quickly dressing, she threw open the door, her mouth parted, ready to lay it all on the line and state her case. Her feet paused in mid-step as her eyes slowly traveled over the empty room. The silence was deafening as the realization hit her that he had already left. Swiftly walking across the space, her feet echoing against the wooden planks, she threw open the front door and glanced down the barren gravel road. The sharp smell of the pine needles drifted toward her and the distant cry of the soaring birds could be heard echoing through the canyon. Leaning resignedly against the doorframe, Aria's eyes gazed fixedly at the empty, winding road, a single unchecked tear slowly cascading down her cheek.


End file.
